By Jessica Rajan
Copyright indiatimes
Omnichannel luxury watch retailer Art of Time has secured Rs 175 crore in a fundraising round from exiting investor CaratLane founder Mithun Sacheti, Jaipur Gems chief executive Siddhartha Sacheti, Freshworks founder Girish Mathrubootham, and Plutus Wealth Management. The round consisted of 70% primary capital infusion, with the rest raised through a secondary share sale.The company plans to deploy the funds to widen its retail footprint, introduce new categories, add talent, and invest in technology and inventory. Art of Time has raised Rs 200 crore in total since inception.Founded in 2015 by Gaurav Bhatia and Bharat Kapoor, the Mumbai-based firm has partnered with around 20 brands, including Cartier, Montblanc, Piaget, and Jaeger-LeCoultre.“Every other brand is looking at India very strongly. They see the potential here and believe they can be the next big thing in the luxury space,” said Bhatia.The company runs 14 boutiques, comprising both multi-brand outlets and exclusive brand stores, across five cities including Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Chennai. “We have three more stores in the pipeline in this fiscal year—one opening soon in Hyderabad; Circa, our new multi-brand concept in Noida this month, and a monobrand boutique in Ahmedabad,” he said. According to Bhatia, the company currently caters to customers earning more than Rs 500,000 per month. With Circa, aimed at the bridge-to-luxury segment, it plans to target consumers in the Rs 50,000 to Rs 3-4 lakh range.“Even among women, there has been a significant shift from jewellery to watches. This has actually increased our share of purchases among women, balancing the ratio of men’s and women’s purchases over the years,” he added.India’s luxury watch market, currently valued at about $1.6 billion, is expected to surge to over $2.8 billion by 2033.The company currently garners about 85% of its revenue from physical stores, with the rest coming from online sales. The company plans to double the share of online sales to 30% over the next two years.Commenting on the investment, CaratLane’s Sacheti said, “Art of Time has unlocked network effects in a high value category that has long been underserved in India.”
