Malaysia-based digital baby store Babydash announced on Thursday that it has raised 1.27 million MYR ($300,000). This bridge funding round is a prelude to future fundraising rounds with institutional investors and prominent venture capitals, the company said in a statement. For the bridge, Babydash received strong community interest, the majority of whom are its users and parenting community.
This raise also saw the participation of the Malaysian Government via the Malaysia Co-Investment Fund (MYCIF), further strengthening its support for the digitalization of the economy and its confidence in Babydash, the company said.
“On behalf of the Babydash Team, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our investors for their tremendous support. We are extremely excited about the opportunity and path forward. pitchIN too has definitely been a strong pillar for our success and we would like to extend our utmost appreciation for their continuous partnership,” said Babydash Founder and Chief Executive Officer Lavinie Thiruchelvam.
Babydash is now doubling down on key targeted activities to aggressively expand its customer and product base. The company aims to drive up revenue per transaction while expanding its footprint in ASEAN targeting to double the size of the company in the next 12 to 18 months.
This is Babydash’s second round of fundraising via equity crowdfunding (ECF) on ECF platform pitchIN. Their first raise (mid-2017) closed a 2 million MYR ($475,116) round. The funds were used to grow the business, as revenues grew three times, with an average growth rate of 46 percent year-on-year.
Over the last few months, Babydash has been investing in new technology which enhances customer experience as well as its data analytics capabilities, delivering on its primary goal of serving customers better. Investment proceeds from this campaign will drive Babydash into the next phase, boosting their lead and market presence in Malaysia and growing the Singapore market as it expands roots across the region.
Founded in 2011, Babydash is a one-stop online baby store in Malaysia that provides the largest range of genuine, curated, high-quality mum and baby products at the best prices. With its customer-first ethos, Babydash said it prioritizes fast delivery, prompt customer guidance and care. As customers increasingly rely on e-commerce solutions during this pandemic, Babydash has provided parents with an invaluable helping hand to meet their needs.
Babydash Singapore launched in 2019, and the company claims to be on track to launch in a few more Asian countries soon. Babydash also commenced a new export business of containers of diapers to the Maldives and will be growing this to other countries as well.