After Wakefit, Verlinvest lines up Purplle and Veeba for IPOs
At least two more consumer startups from the investment firm's India portfolio could go public over the next two years, said Arjun Anand, executive director at Verlinvest.
Wakefit, which sells mattresses, beds, sofas, and home furnishings, filed for a ₹468.2 crore initial public offering last week.
Verlinvest is now preparing some of its mature investments, including Purplle and Veeba, for a public market debut, Anand told Mint, adding that both these companies have crossed ₹1,000 crore in annual revenue. Veeba and Purplle have not yet filed their financials for 2024-25.
While Wakefit is in an advanced stage of going public, Veeba and Purplle are likely to consider a listing over the next two years, Anand added.
'That's how the flywheel works," said Anand. 'Four to five mature companies will exit, three to four new ones will enter, and we will double down on the rest, just like we did with Blue Tokai."
Verlinvest invested a second tranche of $9 million in Blue Tokai Coffee Roasters this month, after putting in $20-21 million last year in the cafe and coffee brand. Mint reported in January that the firm was planning to participate in a fresh investment round in pet care brand Heads Up For Tails.
Verlinvest's other investments in India include yoghurt brand Epigamia and fertility services chain Ferty9. It previously also backed edtech platform Byju's.
As part of its plan to add 2-3 brands to its India portfolio every year, Verlinvest is actively scouting segments such as healthcare services, food and beverage, beauty, and experiential lifestyle for fresh investments, according to Anand.
Purplle, founded in 2012, has raised more than $500 million. In October, the beauty products retailer announced closing its Series F funding round at ₹1,500 crore (about $175,000), led by Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. In July last year, Purplle said it had raised ₹1,000 crore in a funding round led by an arm of ADIA at a valuation of $1.25 billion.
Its other investors include Blume Ventures, billionaire Azim Premji's Premji Invest, and Sharrp Ventures.
Veeba, also founded in 2012, sells sauces, dips, and other condiments. According to market research platform Tracxn, Veeba has raised $58.3 million from investors including Verlinvest, DSG Consumer Partners, and Saama Capital, and is currently valued at about ₹1,860 crore (about $217 million).
Purplle declined to comment on its IPO plans. Veeba didn't immediately reply to Mint's email.
Verlinvest's flywheel
Founded in 1995 by the family promoters of Belgium's AB InBev, the world's largest beer company, Verlinvest invests in consumer companies across Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America.
Unlike most private equity or venture capital funds, Verlinvest does not raise capital in cycles or return capital to limited partners, who are investors in PE and VC funds. Instead, it invests permanent capital from its founding shareholders and recycles gains from successful share sales into new investments.
'Our structure gives us flexibility on timelines. We are not bound by fund life," Anand said. 'We can keep putting more capital into a company over time, and exit when the market is ready."
Verlinvest's approach 'gives founders breathing room to build products and expand distribution networks genuinely, rather than chasing quick returns", said Roma Priya, founder of Burgeon Law, which counts both established and emerging businesses among its clients. 'That aligns well with India's consumer brand landscape, where long-term development often wins over fast scale."
India's public market has recently seen a pipeline of consumer-facing companies joining the IPO queue, following in the footsteps FSN E-Commerce Ventures Ltd (Nykaa) and Honasa Consumer (Mamaearth), both beauty products retailers, and electric scooter maker Ather Energy.
Eyewear retailer Lenskart, online meat seller Licious, electronics and wearables maker boAt, and stock-broking platform Groww are also planning to ride the resurgence in India's IPO market.
'India had the highest number of IPOs in the Asia-Pacific region recently, and over 90 companies have already filed to go public," said Priya. 'For global investors, this signals better exit opportunities driven by improved market sentiment, regulatory support, and a maturing base of Indian retail and institutional investors."
Per Wakefit's IPO filing, Verlinvest plans to offload about 10.19 million shares purchased at ₹82.67 apiece, signalling a lucrative investment exit for the firm.
Earlier this year, Verlinvest sold its remaining 12% stake in Sula Vineyards Ltd, which made its public market debut in December 2022, and trimmed its holding in Purplle from 17% to 10% through a secondary transaction involving the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA).
'Sula returned over 4-5x on our investment, and Purplle also delivered extremely high returns," said Anand. 'Because the exits did well, we are in a strong position to reinvest and scale up."
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