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D2C Online Brand Flatheads raises USD 1 Mn in Pre-Series A from We Founder Circle, Dexter Angels & Others

Bengaluru : D2C online brand Flatheads has raised USD 1 million in pre-series A round from We Founder Circle, Dexter Angels, and others. The funding round led by start-up investment platform We Founder Circle and angel network Dexter Angels also witnessed participation from other marquee investors including Gaurav Kapur (TV presenter and founder, Oaktree Sports), Sahil Barua (Co-founder, Delhivery) and Radhika Ghai (Co-founder, ShopClues).

Flatheads – a Bangalore-based Direct-To-Consumer online brand that designs all-day wear casual sneakers for the discerning urban audience, was launched with a vision to create versatile sneakers suited for the Indian urban lifestyle. Flatheads is the first Indian brand to introduce bamboo fibre shoes that are uniquely suited for the Indian tropical climate. Flatheads is disrupting the footwear category by building unique products which are well designed, high on comfort and distinctively suited for the young urban consumer.

With this investment start-up investment platform, We Founder Circle completes 20 investments in 2021 in continuation of its mission to fund early-stage start-ups in India. Angel investors investing in Flatheads through WFC include Siddharth Shah, Sandeep Balaji, Hemant Umbarkar, Swati Mittal, Victor Banerjee, Shefali Saxena & NK  Securities Research.

On the investment Mr. Neeraj Tyagi, Co-Founder, We Founder Circle said “The funding in D2C sector rose by 251 percent in the first 7 months of the year 2021. The reason is the newly identified scope of growth, and performance of innovative business models in the field. Flatheads have a product innovation focus which has resulted in amazingly lightweight & comfortable shoes. They have taken a tough road by choosing to sell from their website aggressively while using big marketplaces also. As a result, they have created unique value by making their online website also a popular platform to launch multiple product lines in the future.”

“The pandemic has accelerated the adoption of online D2C brands, and we are seeing supercharged growth with a focus on everyday comfort. With the current fundraise, we aim to establish Flatheads as a lifestyle brand made in India for the world – by building the brand identity, expanding our presence internationally and investing in product differentiation,” said Utkarsh Biradar, Co-founder and CEO, Flatheads.

Tushar Agrawal, Partner at Dexter Angels affirmed, “Urban millennial shoppers are attracted towards indigenous, purpose-driven brands which they can resonate with and which provide them a personalized experience. We at Dexter Angels believe the next decade holds tremendous scale-up potential for innovative D2C brands and we are really glad to add Flatheads into our portfolio. They have built a ‘Made in India’ brand with world-class quality leveraging their innovative DNA. The passion and customer-centricity of founders convince us that they are on the path of building India’s most loved D2C footwear brand”.

 The brand plans to utilize funds in international expansion and product differentiation in the market. Including the current round, Flatheads has raised a total of USD 1.5 Mn since its  inception.

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