RAS Luxury Skincare raises $5 million in funding led by Unilever Ventures

Farm-to-face beauty brand RAS Luxury Skincare has raised $5 million in a Series A funding round led by Unilever Ventures, the investment arm of Unilever.

Amazon Smbhav Venture Fund also joined the round, marking two new institutional backers for the Raipur-based company. Existing investors, including Sixth Sense Ventures and other notable angel investors such as Keki Mistry’s family, participated in the round as well.

This comes just months after RAS raised $1.5 million in a pre-Series A round from New York-based climate-focused venture capital firm Green Frontier Capital.

Focus on offline expansion 

Founded by Sangeeta Jain and her daughters, Shubhika and Suramya, RAS produces luxury skincare and beauty products with a blend of natural ingredients and scientific formulations.

The products are manufactured in the startup’s vertically integrated research facility and farms in Chhattisgarh, ensuring control over quality and sustainability.

With the fresh capital, the startup plans to expand its retail footprint across India by opening 50 more exclusive brand outlets (EBOs) over the next three years. It currently operates two EBOs and aims for offline channels to contribute about 25% of its revenue in the next four years.

In addition to new retail stores, RAS will use the funds to invest in talent acquisition, research and development for new product lines, marketing, and tech enhancements.

RAS' market presence  

According to RAS, the brand has experienced a 140% compound annual growth rate over the past year, with more than half of its revenue coming from direct-to-consumer channels.

The remaining sales come from e-commerce and quick commerce platforms, including Nykaa, Amazon, Flipkart, Tira, Blinkit, Zepto and Myntra.

Leadership comments

Shubhika Jain, Founder and CEO, remarked, "Luxury skincare in India is growing rapidly as consumers increasingly value natural, authentic, and high-performance products. With this funding, we aim to accelerate our vision of becoming India's top luxury skincare brand while expanding globally. We remain committed to sustainability, innovation, and profitability."

"We are delighted to support RAS on its journey to create a luxury skincare brand from India that seamlessly combines richness of Indian heritage with the needs of the modern consumer for superior products. As a vertically integrated brand, RAS is uniquely positioned to deliver on its promise of sustainability, safety and products that deliver. We believe that over the next 5-7 years, the premium beauty market in India will witness significant growth, and RAS, with its distinct value proposition, is well poised to capture this opportunity," said Pawan Chaturvedi, Partner and Head - Asia, Unilever Ventures.

Abhijeet Muzumdar, VP Corporate Development, Amazon and Head of Amazon Smbhav Venture Fund added, "Recently, we signed an MoU with DPIIT to propel India as a global manufacturing hub. As part of this endeavour, we are excited to support RAS Luxury Skincare's next phase of growth. Through our USD 350 million Amazon Smbhav Venture Fund and our association with DPIIT, we remain committed to fuelling India's economic development by supporting small businesses and entrepreneurs."