Unitus Seed Fund invests in Caravan Craft

Unitus Seed Fund, a India-focused seed venture capital fund, has invested in Caravan Craft Retail Private Limited, a Bangalore-based venture that is set to launch a new single-brand retail concept in India. The company will soon open its first store in Bangalore with women as its core customers in the initial phase.

National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) has already committed the major portion of the funding for Caravan to build a sustainable model to train and up-skill artisans in India.

Caravan is creating designer products using traditional skill sets of artisans and fusing them with design and technology to satisfy staple needs of consumers around the world. This business intends to improve the livelihood opportunities for multiple rural Indian artisan communities. Caravan is led by Kunal R Sachdev, who has considerable experience in marketing, retail and operations management. He has held senior management and leadership roles at ITC and Hidesign where he was instrumental in building both the brand and the business.

The advisory board of Caravan counts Narayan Ramachandran, former Chief Executive, Morgan Stanley India; Bijou Kurien, President & Chief Executive – Lifestyle, Reliance Retail Ltd and Ananth Raman, UPS Fellow at Harvard Business School, among its members.

“Globally, products that imbibe culture and heritage are positioned at a premium to luxury. The incredible wealth of craftsmanship that India has is an extremely fertile source for products that combine functionality, aesthetics and ‘soul’. Our endeavour is to create meaningful products for global customers and through this process enhance economic value for the craft and the craftsperson,” says Kunal Sachdev, Managing Director & CEO, Caravan Craft Retail Private Limited.

“Our investment decision was anchored by the strength of the team and the international business opportunity,” said Dave Richards, Managing Partner, Unitus Seed Fund. “We believe that the rich heritage of craft in India can be the source of exclusive, premium merchandise for global customers, while providing significant employment opportunities to rural, low-income artisans.”

Adds Dilip Chenoy, Managing Director & CEO, NSDC, “While NSDC spearheads the nation’s Skilling Mission with a target of 150 million pairs of skilled hands to be added by 2022 which will include artisans, it is the demand for skilled Indians generated by businesses like Caravan that makes the new skills ecosystem economically viable and productive in the long run. NSDC, for its part, will continue to study the skill gap in the country and develop its network of training partners who will manage the supply side for skilled manpower at every level.”

Unitus Capital was the financial advisor and Impact Law Ventures was the legal advisor on this transaction.

Website : Caravan Craft