Gro Club, a direct-to-consumer (D2C) kids subscription platform that operates on the principles of circular economy, has announced securing INR 4.3 crores in funding at a valuation of INR 25 Cr. The funding round was led by Ramaiah Evolute, a startup wing of the MS Ramaiah Group.
The funding round also saw participation from an angel consortium, including Deepak Gowda of Ascent Capital, Purushotham R, Chirag Shah of Velvet (Los Angeles), Isaac Reyes of Ravis (Panama), Amit Nanavati of Juicy Chemistry, Sanjay Munirathna of Keerthi Group, Dinesh Talera, Shricharan N J, and Sanjay Sunku of Drink Prime.
Gro Club, which was launched in January 2022 and is currently available in Bengaluru, has gained significant traction in the market within just 16 months. Operating within a 25-kilometer range, the platform has onboarded approximately 4,500 subscribers and is currently generating a Subscription Monthly Revenue Rate of around INR 23 L.
The core concept of Gro Club revolves around providing subscription-based products for growing kids, which can be upgraded as they age. By challenging the conventional “take-make-dispose” approach, Gro Club aims to foster a “reduce-reuse-regenerate” mindset among children.
The founders of Gro Club, Pruthvi Gowda, Hrishikesh, Sapna, and Roopesh Shah, drew inspiration from their own parental experiences. With children aged between 2 and 14 years, they have actively accumulated numerous products that their kids have outgrown.
“Gro Club is on a mission to disrupt the kids space through subscription plans tailor made for access economy, meaning parents never need to buy certain products for their kids again. The fact that parents can now subscribe to a product for the period it is useful to their kids itself is a gamechanger,” said Samartha Raghava, Chief Strategist, Ramaiah Evolute.
“Circular Economy is a transformative concept, especially in this age of rapid climate change, that promotes responsibility, reuse, and regeneration without compromising on consumer experience. Consider a scenario of having growing kids at home – as parents, we naturally want to provide them with various consumer goods like clothes, shoes, cycles, strollers, books, toys, etc. However, the reality is that kids outgrow these products quickly, leading to wastage and drain of resources. Gro Club is disrupting this broken “buy and discard economy” by creating a “subscribe and recycle economy” ensuring a superior product experience at an affordable price point accessible to all aspiring parents. Unlike traditional market purchases that may only last for a year, products from Gro Club can be effectively used for a minimum of 10 years and in some categories a lifetime. This significantly reduces resource utilization, improves affordability, enhances kids’ experience and engenders profitable growth” said Deepak Gowda, Partner Ascent Capital.
“As we tackle climate change, it’s vital to teach our children responsible consumption – ‘reduce-reuse-regenerate.’ GroClub strives to be a sustainable ecosystem, allowing parents to subscribe and access quality products on fractional ownership. Our goal is to offer top-notch products and create community-driven, enriching experiences for parents and children. With the funds raised, we’ll expand our range and reach new Indian cities,” says Pruthvi Gowda, Co-Founder & CEO of GroClub.