In its seed fundraising round, mass premium kidswear brand Includ has raised US $ 1.5 million. Abhishek Goyal, co-founder of Tracxn, Escape Velocity, and the IIM Indore Alumni Angel Fund participated in the round, headed by Incubate Fund Asia. With new funding, the children’s fashion sector is set to undergo a change as high-end, fashion-forward clothing options raise the bar. included intends to develop internal technologies, enhance its supply chain, and raise brand recognition with the money.
Includ was founded in 2023 by Ashwin Rastogi, a seasoned operator who is now an entrepreneur with experience creating sizable direct-to-consumer brands. The company’s goal is to close the quality-price gap in the Indian kidswear market. The brand offers a large selection of cosy and fashionable apparel options for kids ages 0 to 14.
The company intends to focus on developing its front-end platform and mobile application to give customers a seamless shopping experience, in addition to making significant investments in technology to build a strong and effective supply chain and vertically integrate with its suppliers. Additionally, Included will use the money to launch successful marketing and branding initiatives.
“We are excited to partner with Includ as they build design-led high quality and affordable brand for the Indian kidswear market,” said Rajeev Ranka, Partner of Incubate Fund Asia. “Ashwin’s vision, combined with strong execution capabilities and global supply chain expertise we are very excited to support him and build a global brand from India.”
Ashwin Rastogi, Founder of Includ, said, “India’s kidswear market is experiencing a dynamic shift – we are seeing rapid growth in demand for in-trend clothing in the affordable premium segment. With our growing collection, we aim to empower every child to embrace their individuality while offering parents peace of mind through quality and affordability. We are fortunate that our vision is being supported by Industry Titans such as Incubate Fund Asia, Escape Velocity, Abhishek & others”
“We were highly impressed by Ashwin’s domain expertise having built large-scale, digital-first brands from scratch, his knowledge of apparel supply chains and the ability to identify what is still largely a whitespace in both India and other emerging markets”, said Madhav Tandan, Managing Partner, Escape Velocity.