Holistic hair care platform Traya has raised $2.2 million in a pre-Series A funding round, led by Fireside Ventures, with participation from existing investors Kae Capital and Whiteboard Capital.
The company said it will use the funds to strengthen research and development, build cutting edge technology to personalise the hair growth experience and acquire talent and expand brand reach.
Kannan Sitaram, Partner at Fireside Ventures, will join the company’s board.
Speaking on the fundraise, Altaf Saiyed, Co-founder at Traya said, “Having gone through it personally, I know how difficult it is to first accept that one has hair loss & to ask for help. The market is cluttered with wrongful claims, and one tends to believe nothing can be done. Hair loss or hair fall is not a cosmetic problem, it’s a medical problem that needs a diagnosis and doctors and that is what we are here to change.”
“We used our seed funding to build the unique process and products here at Traya to prove the efficacy at scale. Our fresh round of funding will help us take our holistic approach to other stubborn diseases that an average 30-year-old Indian faces. Additionally, we will build our tech further to provide the best support to help customers stick to the regimen. While we will also invest in clinical trials of new unique formulations to further improve the efficacy of the treatment, Traya’s ultimate goal is to provide the youth with a well-rounded, healthy life,” Altaf added.
Commenting on the investment in Traya, VS Kannan Sitaram, Partner at Fireside Ventures said, “Indians, especially men, are losing hair at a fairly young age nowadays and this has a significant impact on self-esteem and confidence. Hair loss is a complex issue that cannot be solved just by topical applications like shampoos and serums. It needs a holistic approach covering diet, nutrition, lifestyle apart from topical applications.”
“Altaf and Saloni have developed enormous expertise in understanding hair loss and developed a unique business model including multiple sciences, consultation, coaching and a suite of products and have demonstrated success in solving hair loss issues. We at Fireside are very excited to work with the Traya team and believe this could be a disruption at a global level,” he added.