TagZ, a premium snack brand for GenZ and the first popped chips manufacturer in India, has secured $2 million in funding during a Pre-Series A round. The funding was led by 9 Unicorns, Dexter Angels, Agility Ventures, Venture Catalysts, Klub, Indifi, and Rannvijay Singha.
Before the latest funding round, TagZ had raised $1.2 million in seed funding from a group of angel investors in 2020. The company also appeared in the first season of Shark Tank India and received undisclosed funding from Namita Thapar and Ashneer Grover.
The funds raised by TagZ will be utilized to expedite the company’s growth, expand its manufacturing capacity, enter new markets, launch new products, and reinforce its operations. Additionally, the funding will be employed to improve TagZ’s technology platform, bolster its logistics network, and intensify its marketing and brand awareness endeavors.
In 2019, Anish Basu Roy and Sagar Bhalotia established TagZ Foods, a company that produces popped potato chips with 50% less fat, a variety of centre-filled cookies, and international gourmet dips. The startup utilizes food technology to create potato chips that are purportedly free of cholesterol, transfat, artificial colors, and preservatives.
Regarding the recent funding, Anish Basu Roy, TagZ’s Founder and CEO, stated that the fresh capital will empower the company to accomplish its objective of becoming the most rapidly expanding food D2C brand.
“We are thrilled to have such strong support from our investors In our journey of creating a fitter snack brand for the younger generation. We plan to double down on your efforts to grow 4X this year.”
In addition, TagZ, a new-age snacking brand based in Bengaluru, revealed that Rannvijay Singh, a renowned actor and television personality, has invested in this funding round and will endorse the brand. Rannvijay is recognized for his entrepreneurial zeal and enthusiasm for innovative and groundbreaking brands. His collaboration with TagZ is anticipated to greatly enhance the company’s brand recognition and customer interaction.
Commenting on his association with TagZ, Rannvijay said, “I am excited to partner with TagZ, a company that is at the forefront of the D2C revolution in India. I love the fact that TagZ, as a snack brand, revolves around travel, sports and the outdoors. I believe that TagZ has the potential to become a major player in the industry, and I am looking forward to being a part of this journey.”
Tushar Agarwal, Partner at Dexter Angels, one of the lead investors in the round, said, “Tagz has garnered significant consumer love as a brand in a short period of time. Since our investment in their previous round, they have demonstrated impressive scalability and growth over the past 18 months while still maintaining a steadfast focus on profitability. As we continue to partner with Tagz, we are thrilled to double down and support their next phase of growth.”
Over the last 18 months, TagZ has experienced a 30-fold surge in volumes. The company concentrates on the top 30-40 million households in the country via an omnichannel approach that encompasses a network of 5000 retail stores and is accessible on over 30 e-commerce platforms like Swiggy Instamart, Zepto, and Blinkit, among others, catering to customers in 22 cities. Furthermore, TagZ’s products are currently accessible in overseas markets such as Kuwait, Dubai, Maldives, and Australia.