Clean label health food brand The Whole Truth raised $6 million in a new financing round led by Sequoia Capital and participated by existing backers along with eight angel investors. This is the second funding round for the Bengaluru-based firm. Sequoia Capital has led the round with Rs 21 crore whereas existing investors Matrix Partners and SauceVC have put in Rs 13.5 and Rs 5 crore respectively. Udaan’s co-founder Sujeet Kumar has invested Rs 1 crore whereas Yatin Shah and Kyush Investments have put in Rs 50 lakh each. Reckitt’s senior vice president and BharatPe’s co-founder and OTP Venture have invested Rs 25 lakh each. The remaining amount has come from Ankush Gera, Dhvanil Rawal, and Sahil Narang.
The fresh capital will be used to hire talent, expand manufacturing capabilities and introduce new products. A part of the funding will also be used by the company to enter new food categories, where fewer or no healthy alternatives are available. The Bengaluru-based company was founded by Shashank Mehta, an ex-Unilever marketeer who has a portfolio of clean label bars and muesli without sugar and preservatives. The product development is headed by Rachna Aggarwal, a bakery chef, and chocolatier.
Unlike regular brands in the space, The Whole Truth positions itself as a healthy and clean snack brand with a portfolio of protein bars, immunity balls, and muesli. The company offers subscriptions and claims to have 80-85% sales through its website and remaining from partnerships with gyms and health clubs. Formerly known as And Nothing Else, the company has recorded revenue from operations of Rs 73.21 lakh during the fiscal ended in March 2020. The company said it has grown 12x since its launch in December 2019.
“At TWT, we’re hell-bent on bringing truth back to food. We do this through our 100% clean-label products, and through clutter-breaking content that helps consumers spot the misleading information they’re being provided,” Shashank Mehta, founder of The Whole Truth, said in a statement.
Yoga Bar, Eat Anytime and Tata Consumer Soulfull are a few competitors in the market. Following the fundraiser, the company’s founder Shashank Mehta’s stake has been diluted to 42.91%. The other two co-founders Aditi Gupta and Samir Singh collectively own 4.42%. Matrix is the largest stakeholder among investors with 20.17% while Sequoia has picked up 10.37% by leading this round.
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