Latest news with #MensaBrands
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Business Standard
13-06-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Brnd.Me sells MensXP parent ILN to RPSG Group in portfolio overhaul
the roll-up e-commerce company formerly known as Mensa Brands, has divested India Lifestyle Network—the parent of men's lifestyle platform MensXP—to Kolkata-based RPSG Group, according to people familiar with the matter. The company confirmed the transaction but declined to disclose financial terms. 'Yes, we have sold ILN Network to RPSG Group. We have taken some strategic calls to simplify our portfolio, which led to the divestment of some of our financial and non-strategic assets, including ILN. We cannot disclose financial details regarding the same,' the company said in a statement. The all-cash transaction was reportedly valued at approximately $9 million, marking a sharp decline from the roughly $60 million price tag paid for the asset—representing a drop of about 85 per cent in valuation. said the firm is profitable with strong positive cash flows and owns brands that are global leaders in their spaces. The company also clarified that it is not looking to sell any of its businesses to raise funds. It has two clearly defined verticals: health and wellness, contributing 60 per cent of revenue, and lifestyle, which accounts for the remaining 40 per cent. 'We foresee tremendous growth potential for our current brands, both domestically as well as internationally, and believe that the time is right to build global brands from India—and is leading this change,' the company added. In December 2022, Mensa Brand Technologies Pvt Ltd—the parent company behind several direct-to-consumer labels under the Mensa Brands umbrella—teamed up with India Lifestyle Network to acquire a portfolio of digital lifestyle properties from Times Internet. The deal included the men's platform MensXP, the women-focused site iDiva, and the creator marketing firm Hypp. Financial terms were not disclosed. At the time, Mensa said the acquisitions were aimed at strengthening its digital brand-building capabilities and driving synergies in its push to create a next-generation, digital-first consumer business. The company had noted that the platforms collectively attracted 40 million monthly users and 250 million monthly content views. In May 2023, Mensa Brands laid off around 30 employees from India Lifestyle Network (ILN). In November 2021, Mensa Brands had raised $135 million at a valuation of nearly $1.2 billion, making it the fastest Indian start-up to reach unicorn status.
Mint
30-04-2025
- Business
- Mint
After Pebble, Mensa looks to sell its Renee stake
Mensa Brands has sold its stake in wearables maker Pebble and is looking to exit Renee Cosmetics, as the brand aggregator looks to cash out of some of its recent investments. The company also plans to raise $100 million at a valuation of $850 million and shift base to India ahead of a planned public listing, three people aware of the development said. 'Apart from selling a stake in Renee, where it holds around 15% stake, Mensa is also likely to divest its stake in brands such Villain," he added. A Mensa Brands spokesperson confirmed the Renee stake sale, calling it a 'financial investment'. In 2022, Mensa Brands had invested in Renee, which offers so-called cruelty-free makeup products for women. The stake sale may value Renee at ₹ 2,000-2,500 crore, a second person with knowledge of the deal said, implying a ₹ 200 crore value for Mensa's stakeholding. Mensa Brands, which led Renee's Series A fundraising, holds about 11% stake in Renee. The Mensa Brands spokesperson denied other brands were up for sale, including Villain, a men's cosmetics brand that it backed in 2021. Queries emailed to a Renee Cosmetics spokesperson remained unanswered. Mensa Brands is also shifting its headquarters to India, joining a queue of foreign-domiciled startups such as Flipkart, Zepto and Dream Sports which have already moved, aiming to tap the country's capital markets better. 'The company has initiated a process to flip back to India from Singapore. This is their preparation to eventually list in India going forward," one of the three people cited above said. The Mensa Brands spokesperson said the IPO is at least 36 months away. Founded by former Myntra CEO Ananth Narayanan in 2021, Mensa has received some of the highest seed investments among Indian startups. It has raised a total of $207 million in funding, data from Tracxn shows. Top backers include Accel, Alpha Wave Global and Norwest Venture Partners. Following a house of brands strategy, it has acquired around 20 brands in the apparel, beauty and personal care and home décor segments. The strategy involves acquiring multiple fast-growing digital-first brands and scaling them under a single roof. With $200 million in annualized revenue run rate, Mensa Brands has turned Ebitda-positive, the spokesperson said. 'We have been Ebitda-profitable month-on-month now." India has seen a handful of startups pursuing the house of brands strategy, following what has globally become known as the Thrasio model. Under this structure, one company would consolidate multiple small e-commerce brands and sellers under its umbrella, and run them as a single, organized company. By doing so, companies promise to expand operating margins by reducing overheads such as office expenses, accounting and legal costs, and other various costs of operation—leaving small brands under them to generate bigger returns. Apart from Mensa, another key player that received investor love was Firstcry-backed Globalbees. Backed by investors such as Lightspeed, ChrysCapital and SoftBank, the firm has so far raised $280 million in debt and equity. Meanwhile, Bengaluru-based Boxseat Ventures Pvt. Ltd, which operates e-commerce aggregator 10Club, is close to shutting shop, less than four years after it raised $40 million in early-stage money. Other smaller players in the space include Upscalio, Goat, Powerhouse91 and Evenflow.
