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In focus
- The consumer trends shaping Fireside’s next bets
- The Indian lender riding the housing boom to market
- From our archives: The minds behind India’s genAI
Hello reader,
When I walked into the Fireside Ventures office in Bengaluru, it felt like any other modern startup workspace with an open layout, bright colors, and several cafes and eateries nearby. But one thing immediately stood out: Within minutes, four different individuals at the office had stopped by to offer tea and coffee.
It felt like a small gesture, but maybe that’s the point. Consumer businesses are built on experiences that make people feel cared for, often in ways they don’t consciously notice. Maybe that is also what Fireside looks for in the founders and brands it backs.
For our first top story today, I sat down with Kanwaljit Singh, founder and managing partner at Fireside Ventures, to understand how the firm decides which founders deserve more backing, what consumer tech trends are shaping the next generation of startups, and how AI is changing the way investors evaluate consumer businesses.
What began as an experiment with investments in startups such as Mamaearth and Licious has now turned into one of India’s biggest investors in consumer brands, with a portfolio of over 70 startups.
Apart from consumer brands, we also take a closer look at the country’s housing boom. Our freelancer Rachel Chitra reports that Hinduja Leyland Finance – the financing arm of commercial vehicle maker Ashok Leyland, which manages US$8 billion in assets – is preparing to go public through a proposed reverse merger.
Read together, these stories offer two perspectives on where investors are placing their bets in India.
Samreen Ahmad, journalist
Top Stories
1️⃣ Inside Fireside Ventures’ decade of backing consumer startups
Image by Ulla, photos courtesy of Fireside Ventures
Fireside Ventures was already investing in digital-first consumer brands in India before direct-to-consumer became a buzzword. Singh explains why he saw an opportunity to back such brands nearly 10 years ago.
He also shares how the VC firm has revamped its investment strategy – with just 35% of its capital allocated to first checks and 65% reserved for follow-on investments – and why D2C brands perceive going offline as an extension of their online strategy, not as a separate business.
Unlock the Lightning Pitch advantage
From our archives
How AI is changing the founder’s playbook
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