Latest news with #Ugaoo
Entrepreneur
13-06-2025
- Business
- Entrepreneur
How Ugaoo Turned Houseplants into a National Movement for Urban India
"We didn't wait for the perfect moment we jumped in, took risks, and built everything from scratch," Siddhant Bhalinge, Founder, Ugaoo Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media. From seed packets to a INR 100 crore brand, Ugaoo is redefining what it means to live green in Indian cities. Founder Siddhant Bhalinge traces the origins of Ugaoo to a moment of curiosity during his time in Italy. "I saw people growing herbs and vegetables on their windowsills, and I kept wondering why can't we do this in India?" he recalls. That thought eventually germinated into a bold entrepreneurial leap. "When I started Ugaoo in 2015, there wasn't a playbook or precedent for building a national gardening brand in India," Bhalinge says. "We didn't wait for the perfect moment we jumped in, took risks, and built everything from scratch." What kept him going, he adds, was the belief that "plants deserved a place in every Indian home." Making gardening modern, accessible, and aspirational Ugaoo's early business model focused on selling seeds, but it was the move to live plants that truly transformed its trajectory. "That single decision changed everything. It helped us connect instantly with urban consumers looking for quick wins and aesthetic upgrades," says Bhalinge. Another turning point came with the establishment of Ugaoo's own 25-acre farm in Talegaon, near Pune. This gave the brand complete control over quality, pricing, and inventory. To solve the complex challenge of shipping live plants across India, the team developed customised packaging and set up regional hubs. The company's most recent leap was embracing quick commerce via Blinkit and Zepto, making houseplants as instantly accessible as groceries. This move, along with a strong D2C website, offline experience centres, and presence on marketplaces, helped the brand cross INR 100 crore in ARR while remaining operationally profitable. "We always believed plants are companions," Bhalinge explains. "That insight helped us move from being a transactional brand to one that sparks transformation." Through content-led campaigns like #SajaooWithUgaoo, the company elevated plant care from a utilitarian chore to an act of mindfulness and self-care. The brand offers plant care guides, hosts workshops, and curates bundles to suit different lifestyles from air-purifying plants to pet-safe options. "Our goal was to make gardening feel less like a chore and more like self-care," he adds. "And that's exactly what resonated with our millennial and Gen Z audience." Also, the founder shares that their community-led approach has been central to its D2C success. "We weren't just building a product but building a movement," says Bhalinge. With an entirely in-house content team, the brand creates founder-led stories, behind-the-scenes farm tours, plant unboxings, and user-generated content that make the brand feel personal and human. Tier 2 cities, new categories, global growth Having doubled its revenue from INR 24 crore in FY23 to INR 63 crore in FY24, Ugaoo is setting its sights on deeper domestic expansion and international markets. "Our approach is omnichannel by design," says Bhalinge. The brand currently operates fulfilment hubs in five major cities and is now building infrastructure in Tier 2 cities like Indore, Nashik, and Bhopal. Its goal is to open 80 physical stores by FY2030. Ugaoo is also exploring global markets like the Middle East and Southeast Asia and branching into verticals such as plant-based air purifiers (in collaboration with uBreathe), sustainable gifting, and wellness-focused home décor. "At our core, we're still a plant-first brand but we see ourselves becoming the go-to platform for conscious, green living in India and beyond. The future is lush and we're just getting started," Bhalinge concludes. Quick Facts Founded: 2015 Best Selling Product: Jade Plant Annual Revenue: INR 100 crore (ARR) Employees: 196 Instagram Followers: 330k LinkedIn Followers: 15k
India Today
13-06-2025
- India Today
Breathe easy
The goal of mixing and matching is to find the perfect pairing. The uBreathe Life clearly takes this to heart. It merges an air purifier with a planter—because why choose when you can have both? Born from a collaboration between Ugaoo, an urban gardening company, and biotech startup uBreathe, this green machine cleans spaces up to 250 sq ft using patented Breathing Roots tech and a five-layer plant-powered filter. Add in real-time AQI tracking, smart home control, and eco-fr iendly materials, and you've got the freshest corner in the room—literally.
Time of India
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
This Mother's Day, Ugaoo showcases moms in all forms
HighlightsUgaoo's Mother's Day campaign, 'Moms In All Forms', celebrates modern motherhood by highlighting diverse representations of maternal figures, from plant-loving mothers to supportive friends. The campaign features a vibrant brand film that poses the question, 'What even is a mom today?' and answers it by showcasing various characters, including Jia, the meditative plant mom, and Sheela, the wise biological mom. Through the campaign, Ugaoo aims to transform emotional storytelling into quick commerce with special-edition Mother's Day plant pods available for 10-minute delivery via platforms like Blinkit, Zepto, and Instamart. For Mother's Day this year, Ugaoo , India's houseplants and urban gardening company, has launched its new campaign. With Moms In All Forms, Ugaoo delivers a spirited, witty and relatable campaign that celebrates modern motherhood in all its diverse, delightful avatars. From plant-loving Zen mamas to glam godmothers and 'text me when you reach' besties, the campaign ad is a love letter to every woman who shows up with motherly energy, in her own style. At the heart of the campaign is a vibrant brand film that asks a culturally relevant question: What even is a mom today? The answer is playful and powerful, she might be your sister, your therapist-friend, your boss-turned-mentor, or that chaos-coordinating aunt who always brings dessert. And each of them deserves a gift that's as meaningful as their presence: a plant that thrives, just like they help us do. Through this campaign, Ugaoo brings emotional storytelling into the realm of quick commerce , with special-edition Mother's Day plant pods available for 10-minute delivery via Blinkit, Zepto, and Instamart. ' Motherhood today is layered, dynamic and beyond biology,' said Siddhant Bhalinge , founder, Ugaoo. 'With Moms In All Forms, we wanted to move past traditional, emotional tropes and spotlight the many ways women nurture, guide, and uplift us. Our partnership with quick commerce platforms makes this appreciation instant and impactful.' Ugaoo's signature blend of purpose and playfulness comes through in characters like Jia, the meditative plant mom; Sheela, the wise, no-nonsense biological mom; and Ishi, the ride-or-die bestie with emergency contact status. Whether it's Soumya, the luxury-loving rich auntie, or Janvi, the sister who doubles as a life coach, the film highlights the full spectrum of mom energy, with a green, gorgeously giftable twist. Moms In All Forms is more than just a Mother's Day tribute, it's an astute cultural commentary dressed up in humour and houseplants. It positions Ugaoo not just as a plant brand, but as a lifestyle brand fluent in the language of modern relationships and emotionally intelligent commerce, the company stated in a press release. With this campaign, Ugaoo plants its flag firmly in the content marketing space, where brand storytelling isn't just about reach, it's about resonance, it added. Watch the video here:
