BACKING THE AUDACIOUS ENTREPRENEUR

After nurturing icons like Flipkart, Myntra, FirstCry, Poilcybazaar and Lenskart in the first wave of India's startup revolution, veteran early-stage investor Chiratae Ventures is looking to replicate its success in e-commerce 2.0 as well

-  Rohit Chintapali

IN THE LAST two decades, as entrepreneurs made a beeline to solve the world's most pertinent problems by leveraging technology, they were lauded, recognised widely and adored by the masses. While some achieved notoriety and perished during the market downturns, others chipped away at the mountain of issues that plagued humanity. Their sheer audacity to take on massive problems despite being a blip in the grand scheme of things needed support. And that's where VC firms like Chiratae Ventures stepped in to give the entrepreneurial spirit the much-needed wings.

In its 16 years of existence, Chiratae Ventures has funded a wide range of early-stage startups and seen them scale massive heights over time. With big names like Flipkart, Myntra, FirstCry, and Poilcybazaar in its portfolio, Chiratae Ventures has been there and done that' through the multiple market dips. "This is my fifth so-called 'down cycle. And every time, we've just put our heads together on the ground, worked hard with our companies. We always found our entrepreneurs to be very mature," says Sudhir Sethi, Founder and Chairman, Chiratae Ventures.

With the current slowdown affecting the global markets, VC firms have tightened the funding tap all of a sudden, and startups that were riding on ample funding in the last two years have had to think about their runways all of a sudden. But Chiratae likes to keep its outlook positive.

"We don't foresee startups having major troubles. But companies have to work on making their businesses profitable and prudently burn their cash now," says TCM Sundaram, Founder and Vice Chairman, Chiratae Ventures. "These cycles keep happening in terms of funding."

Lenskart, the eponymous eyewear behemoth, received Chiratae's support when it needed the most in its early stages. Twelve years have passed since then, and Chiratae continues to repose its faith in the company which has today grown to boast a valuation of $4.5 billion.