Lenskart raises $220 mn, aims to scale operations in SE Asia & Middle East

Eyewear retailer Lenskart, has completed a $220 million transaction led by Temasek and Falcon Edge Capital. This round of funding comes a month after it raised $95 million from global investment fund KKR, taking the total transaction size to $315 million. The current round also saw participation from Bay Capital and Chiratae.

With this, the vision of Lenskart is to grow exponentially in the coming 3-4 years, expanding its presence in India as well as scaling its growing operations in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, the company said. It further said it aims to leverage the deep expertise and network of Temasek and Falcon Edge in these respective geographies. Avendus Capital was the exclusive financial advisor to Lenskart and its shareholders on the transaction.

The funding comes as the brand is rapidly scaling its operations overseas while maintaining the company’s core proposition to customers of omnichannel experience online and offline. The market opportunity for Lenskart in these target geographies is expected to be over $15 billion by 2025. 

Along with the expansion, Lenskart is also planning to use the capital to deepen its investments in technology and AI-driven innovations to create a highly personalised experience for its customers, it said. The company also recently set up ‘Lenskart Vision Fund’, through which it is looking to invest in startups that deal in eyewear, eye-care, and omnichannel retail to create a deep ecosystem around the eyewear segment.

“At Lenskart, our vision is to revolutionise the global eye-wear industry and evolve into one of the biggest and most admired consumer internet brands globally with our customers being testimonial to our journey of innovation and disruption. We’re already the largest eyewear player in India and in the top 3 in Singapore,” said Peyush Bansal, Founder and CEO of Lenskart.

“Lenskart envisions to have 50% of India wearing its specs over the next 5 years and become the #1 eyewear platform in Southeast Asia and Middle East over the next 18 to 24 months through organic and inorganic expansion,” he added.