Koparo, a sustainable home and personal hygiene D2C brand, has raised $1.5 million in a pre-Series A round led by Saama Capital. Joining as co-investors are new institutions Fluid Ventures and M Venture Partners along with new angel investors GSF Accelerator's founder and CEO Rajesh Sawhney, Multiples PE's managing director Sridhar Sankararaman, and Wingreens Group co-founder Ramesh Menon. The round also saw participation from existing investors DSG Consumer Partners. 

Koparo will strategically deploy this capital to build an offline presence, invest in brand building, and drive product innovation. The brand claims its revenues have grown by 10X since its last funding round, where it raised $750000 in seed rounds from Saama and DSG Capital.

The D2C company offers a portfolio of over 15 products across over 30 SKUs across core cleaning, speciality cleaning, and accessories. Its products are available through its own website, which contributes to approximately 40 per cent of overall revenue, other e-commerce sites and 70 stores of Reliance Retail and Modern Bazaar.

Simran Khara, the founder of Koparo, said, "The modern Indian household seeks effective cleaning products that are not laden with harsh chemicals. Several sub-categories within cleaning are already responding well to our proposition."

Koparo aims to accelerate its growth trajectory further as it seeks to grow its revenues by 8X within 20 months by focusing on its core range, expanding distribution points, and introducing products in newer sub-categories.

With the increasing demand for hygiene products, Koparo plans to launch variants of some of its leading products, building a range of speciality cleaners catering to modern Indian cleaning needs and introducing complementing kitchen and home cleaning accessories. It will also continue building depth in the laundry vertical, the largest sub-category in home cleaning, and introducing more pet-friendly products. 

Ash Lilani, founder and managing partner of Saama Capital, said, "Koparo has grown its monthly revenues by 10x since our last investment in November 2021. More importantly, they have built a strong brand that consumers love and trust. Saama is excited to support the brand through its next growth phase."

According to an Imarc report, the Indian household cleaners market reached $7.5 billion in 2022 and is expected to grow 18.9 per cent CAGR over the next five years. The industry is fast premiumising and the top end is increasing in excess of 30 per cent year-on-year, signalling a fast-changing preference of Indian consumers to upgrade to safe and toxins-free products for their homes. Several major players are betting big on tapping into this premium demand for in-home care. While these are early days, Koparo's product portfolio and growing acceptance are helping it gain a first-mover advantage. 

Hiran Embuldeniya, a partner at M Venture Partners, said, "Simran's visionary approach to reshaping household cleanliness with a positive ecological impact fits well with MVP's focus on the consumer brands in India. We are excited to partner with Koparo on this journey to create a cleaner and greener future for the rapidly growing urban households in India."

Founded by Khara, who has worked at McKinsey & Co, Star TV, and more recently as CEO of digital media startup Juggernaut Books, Koparo offers a natural alternative to the regular cleaning products available in the market. Koparo was selected to be a part of the Founder Stack program by Accel where they received mentorship from the VC firm for 3 months to help them build and scale a consumer startup for today's times.