Mass premium kidswear brand Includ raises $1.5M in a seed round led by Incubate Fund Asia, others

Includ, a mass premium kidswear brand, has raised $1.5 million in a seed funding round. Incubate Fund Asia led the round with participation from Escape Velocity, Abhishek Goyal (Co-founder, Tracxn), and IIM Indore Alumni Angel Fund.

The startup said the funding is poised to catalyze a revolution in the children's fashion industry, elevating standards with high-quality and trendsetting apparel offerings. It plans to use the funds to improve its supply chain, build in-house technology and create brand awareness.

Investing in technology

The startup also plans to heavily invest in technology to vertically integrate with its suppliers, and build a robust and efficient supply chain to ensure timely delivery, while also focusing on developing its front-end platform and mobile application to provide a seamless shopping experience for customers.

Additionally, It will leverage the funds to implement effective marketing and brand strategies.

Bridging the gap in the Indian kidswear market

Started in 2023 by Ashwin Rastogi, a seasoned operator turned entrepreneur with expertise in building large D2C brands, Includ aims to bridge the gap in the Indian kidswear market for high-quality yet affordable apparel. The brand caters to children aged 0 to 14 years old, offering a wide range of comfortable and stylish clothing options.

Prior to Includ, Ashwin was a successful operator with an extensive background in identifying and scaling D2C businesses such as Urbanic London and Club Factory. He has a deep understanding of e-commerce, supply chain and both the Indian and emerging market consumer.

Rastogi highlights kidswear market growth

Driven by ~25M births every year, the largest in the world, the Indian kidswear market is estimated to become a $20 billion opportunity in the coming years driven by increasing spend per child and higher e-commerce adoption.

However, the market has traditionally been dominated by a few major players offering generic designs with little or no differentiation. Includ differentiates itself by offering unique and contemporary designs at competitive prices, making high-fashion accessible to a range of consumers across all parts of India.

Rastogi said India's kidswear market is experiencing a dynamic shift. "We are seeing rapid growth in demand for in-trend clothing in the affordable premium segment. With our growing collection, we aim to empower every child to embrace their individuality while offering parents peace of mind through quality and affordability. We are fortunate that our vision is being supported by Industry Titans such as Incubate Fund Asia, Escape Velocity, Abhishek & others," Rastogi added.

In less than a year of launch, the brand crossed monthly sales of more than Rs 2 crore.

What did investors say about Includ?

“We are excited to partner with Includ as they build design-led high quality and affordable brand for the Indian kidswear market,” said Mr Rajeev Ranka, Partner of Incubate Fund Asia. “Ashwin’s vision, combined with strong execution capabilities and global supply chain expertise we are very excited to support him and build a global brand from India.”

“We were highly impressed by Ashwin’s domain expertise having built large-scale, digital-first brands from scratch, his knowledge of apparel supply chains and the ability to identify what is still largely a whitespace in both India and other emerging markets”, said Mr. Madhav Tandan, Managing Partner, Escape Velocity.