Exciting news is in the air for jewelry enthusiasts! Bluestone, a well-known jewelry retailer mixing online and offline experiences, is about to get a financial boost of Rs 550 crore (around $65 million). Imagine it as a power-up for your favorite video game character, but for a jewelry brand!
Guess who's jumping on the investment bandwagon? Nikhil Kamath, one of the brains behind Zerodha, is bringing Rs 100 crore to the party. That's a lot of sparkle for Bluestone! But he's not alone. Deepinder Goyal and Amit Jain, the masterminds behind Zomato, and financial services firm IIFL are also chipping in. It's like a jewelry party, and everyone's invited!
Gaurav Singh Kushwaha, the founder and CEO of Bluestone, confirmed this shiny piece of news. This funding is like a golden stamp of approval, valuing Bluestone at a dazzling Rs 3,600 crore (around $440 million). Ranjan Pai, the chairman of Manipal Group, and Info Edge Ventures are also in this glittering mix, each adding Rs 100 crore to the treasure chest. And guess what? Bluestone's current investors are cheering them on too! Talk about a fan club!
Picture this: In a land where jewelry battles are fierce, Tata Group's Titan recently acquired a rival called CaratLane. That rival was valued at a whopping $2 billion! But Bluestone is no stranger to winning battles. Before this, they'd already raised $30 million from the Hero Group's family office, valuing the brand at $378 million.
Gaurav Singh Kushwaha shared his dreams for Bluestone's future. He said, "We will expand on what’s working for us — the omnichannel play. We have 175 stores, and there is definitely space to have 500-600 stores eventually." It's like they're gearing up for a jewelry marathon!
Established in 2011, Bluestone was one of the pioneers in selling jewelry online. But guess what they did? They decided to mix things up by opening physical stores too. Talk about turning the game around!
As Bluestone gets ready to shine even brighter in the world of jewelry, this funding round is like adding more gems to their treasure. So, get ready for a whole lot more sparkle!