Boat, in its latest funding round, had raised $6.7 million from Qualcomm’s VC arm known as Qualcomm Ventures
Home grown consumer electronics startup is planning to take the IPO route. The move, rumored to be taken as early as next year, involves Boat trying to raise Rs 3,500 cr.
A report by Livemt points that the startup is looking at valuation of aroud 1.4 billion for the initial IPO. Started by Sameer Mehta and Aman Gupta in 2016, Boat has so far rasied close to $116 million from the likes of Qualcomm Ventures, Warburg Pincus, InnoVen Capital and Fireside Ventures.
Boat, in its latest funding round, had raised $6.7 million from Qualcomm’s VC arm known as Qualcomm Ventures. The company had clocked revenue figures of Rs 704 Cr during FY2020. Its profit in the year stood at around Rs 8 cr.
In partnership with Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders, Punjab Kings, Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, and Royal Challengers Bangalore, boAt had launched limited edition products under its Airdopes, Bassheads and Rockerz brand during the IPL 2021 season.
While the TWS market saw a 156 per cent YoY growth in Q1 2021, boAt skyrocketed with a massive 576 per cent YoY growth. Out of the top five highest-grossing TWS models, boAt successfully bagged three spots with Airdopes 131, Airdopes 381 , and Airdopes 121. It sets sail to garner more visibility and exposure with its strategically planned marketing campaigns, including partnerships with six IPL teams in the 2021 season.
Besides the audio industry, boAt is also expanding into new categories like smartwatches and grooming. Misfit is a new sub-brand launched by boAt targeting men.