New age plant based better-for-you confectioners startup Kandeefactory raises INR 1.5 CR from ah! Ventures Angel Platform and others including Keiretsu and Polaris Family Office New age plant based better-for-you confectioners startup Kandeefactory raises INR 1.5 CR from ah! Ventures Angel Platform along with Keiretsu and Polaris Family Office joining the round. Kandee Factory is at the forefront of sustainable manufacturing practices and is one of the only manufacturers world-wide that harnesses the power of atmospheric air water extraction technology in order to make environmentally friendly new age plant based better-for-you candies and confections. ah! Ventures’ has done 131 investments in 98 startups till date taking its total investment portfolio to INR 279 CR (~37 MN USD) with 14 exits and 28 follow on rounds. 31 investments have happened through all three platforms in 2022 till date. Kandee Factory clocked a revenue of Rs. 268 Lakhs for FY21-22. It recorded a 70% growth from the previous year, a global provider of plant-based highly innovative first in confectionery category products with scalable production capabilities. Kandee Factory allows for conscious consumerism a growing trend worldwide with melt in mouth confections using only plant-based ingredients, no gelatin, no milk, and no cruelty to animals in the process. Mahesh Dharam, Co-Founder of Kandee Factory describes his journey, “The story of Kandee Factory started when me and my son Jishnu went on a trip to Goa. On that trip I realized that Swirl pops and candies of great quality were pretty hard to find. Most of them only arrived as imports from China and Europe, seeing this as an opportunity and a void in the confectionary industry landscape, I decided to give birth to my own venture, Kandee Factory.” As of 2022, a million of candies have been sold online and in over 750+ physical stores nationwide. Three of their brands have been best sellers over the last five years in a market dominated by the global MNCs. The products now reach global markets of Europe via Amazon’s global selling programs. They were also awarded by the SIDBI as one of the, ‘Top 5 Startups of the nation’ in January 2020. Garnering business sense and exposure since school days, along with years of experience in the financial service industry, Mahesh truly created something out of the ordinary. They have recently launched world’s first vegetarian marshmallow covered in complete chocolate. Their factory unit is composed of a 100% women team, most of whom originate from an economically underprivileged background. As the decades go by, Kandee Factory aims at delighting their customers with more innovative products and create free of animal cruelty. The company is billing 150 B2B & 1000 B2C supplies every month with an average monthly revenue of 25Lacs+ and current production capacity is at 100% utilization. Kandeefactory was recently nominated to be one among 5 startups from Tamilnadu to represent at the World Economic Forum Davos 2022. “Kandee Factory is a unique company, whose products appeal to all ages. In a highly competitive space, they have put together all the right ingredients, both in their products and their business model, which has given them such a phenomenal growth in a short time with limited resources. Their potential is immense for the category is everlasting with boundless scope for innovation and sustainable practices.”, said Mr.E Nandhakumar, Ex-ITC Operations Head, Keiretsu Angel Investor Forum Chennai & Singapore "Kandee Factory’s unique strategy of new age plant based, 100% vegan sweet confectionery builds a pathway to a promising business. Startup has shown an immense growth since its launch while building a sustainable and ESG compliant business. Mahesh and Anusha have a strong vision, commitment and passion towards building Kandee Factory as a global brand.", said Karan Gala Deal Lead - Kandeefactory and Venture Partner at ah! Ventures Contact: Abhijeet Kumar, abhijeet@ahventures.in About ah! Ventures ah! Ventures is one of the world's largest fundraising platform for early stage startups raising up to 10 MN USD. ah! Ventures has three platforms: First Gear, which helps startups raise upto INR 1 CR (~USD 150K), Angel Platform, which helps startups raise upto 1 MN USD and High Tables Platform, which helps startups raise 1-10 MN USD. Today ah! First Gear, Angel and High Tables platforms have over 70000+ entreprenurs, 2000+ seed/angel investors and over 1000 VCs & institutional investors registered with it. ah! First Gear, Angel and High Tables platforms till date have invested INR 279 CR (~37 MN USD) in 98 startups & 131 investments and have announced 14 exits & 28 follow on rounds. Contact: Abhijeet Kumar, abhijeet@ahventures.in