ATLANTA—India-based online brand Besharam (IMBesharam.com), announced it has secured more than $250,000 seed capital from two Atlanta-based investors and founders contributions to launch its #GlobalAdultStore.
The Global Adult Store will cater to the Indians and South Asians outside of India, and will ship orders to U.S., Canada, U.K., Europe, West and South Africa, Middle East, South East Asia and Australia and New Zealand.
“We are grateful, honored and humbled to have the support and backing of very respected individuals and professionals who not only shared our vision but great understanding of the affluent audience that we will target to,” said Raj Armani, COO and co-founder. “Our business model has always been a unique proposition, with the initial focus on Indians in India, we had setup custom logistics, processes and marketing in place to ship and deliver American and European brands to India in 2013 when the idea of cross-border commerce was just taking birth amongst the e-commerce industry. Now, after six years of successful operation and half a million orders delivered, we are leveraging the brand reputation and goodwill to reach out to 75M Indians outside of India, a $400 million unexplored opportunity.”
Last October, co-founders Raj Armani and Salim Rajan introduced their funding campaign with an entertaining elevator pitch video and website. The website features the founders’ story, the team and their vision, as well as their growth plan and testimonials from industry veterans. The pitch video went viral on LinkedIn with more than 2 million impressions and more than 151 comments from business veterans and professionals in a three-day time period.
The new webstore will be the first adult store for non-resident Indians (NRIs) that will educate, communicate and deliver world-class products at competitive prices and with free shipping. The main office will be located in Atlanta, with sales and support team in Kiev, Ukraine; Lisbon, Portugal; and Mumbai, India. The new seed capital funding will be used to launch the brand and fuel operations for the first phase, establish its sales and support teams, inventory, online and offline marketing in the U.S. and Canada and for website redesign/development.
“In the last few years, the adult products industry has witnessed phenomenal growth and entry into FMCG category, most innovations in product design and packaging, and influx of investor funding of over $100 million dollars, including the recent majority stake investment in LoveHoney,” said Salim Rajan, CEO and co-founder. This makes it optimum timing for a territory expansion and targeted marketing of a niche audience, thus a ripe opportunity for the business to scale up and expand its geographical reach. The Global Adult Store will apply the knowledge gained from analyzing the data of over 60 months of buying habits of Indians, and the expertise in managing the various challenges that come in catering to the laws and customs of various countries and culture and values of the Indian community.”
Peter Chang, who is a co-investor in the brand, is a respectable and reputable real estate professional responsible for bringing Chinese and East Asian Investments in Atlanta since the ’80s. As a veteran in the Atlanta real estate community, Peter has been involved in more than $1 billion of assets in multifamily, retail, office and industrial sectors. He is also managing partner of Atlanta Chinatown Investments, LLC. Peter obtained his master’s degree from the State University of New York at Binghamton and a bachelor’s degree from Hong Kong Baptist University. Apart from being an investor, he will also be an on the advisory board of the company.
“Many NRIs have access to the adult products in the West and have been purchasing it from online stores like Amazon.com, Adam & Eve, LoveHoney, AnnSummers and others, but the undisputed fact of sales is based on human psychology, which says, considering all other factors being standard (like pricing, packaging and service), if a buyer likes you and trusts you, they will buy from you,” Chang said. “Besharam has earned the trust of Indians in India, and now with the Global Store, it aims to communicate, educate and deliver world-class adult products at compelling prices to Indians worldwide. Besharam was founded by Indians for Indians, So the NRI audience will be able to browse and shop from a brand they can relate to and connect with. We are very excited to support Besharam’s vision and expansion goals and we hope to bring valuable network and resources in their early stages.”
The second investor is a South Asian community figure and a senior director in a multi million-dollar software company with presence in the U.S. and India who has chosen to stay anonymous. He will also be an advisor to the company, and said this: “We strongly believe that there is a large potential with NRIs worldwide, who are excited to buy from a brand, Besharam, that has been able to build trust, value and reputation across the Indian subcontinent and now ready to expand their wings to spread happiness across the world, further advancing its founding motto—by Indians, for Indians!”
The Global Store will showcase world-class brands such as Womanizer, Satisfyer, We-Vibe, Lelo, Fleshlight, Kiiroo, OhMIBod, Bijoux Indiscrets, Rocks Off, Screaming O, Fifty Shades of Grey, Sex & Mischief, Liberator, Amorelie, KamaSutra, Rhythm Toys, System Jo, pjur, Sliquid, Bathmate, Bodywand, Fun Factory, Tenga, Penthouse, Aneros, Baci, ReneRofe, BSwish, AutoBlow and many more. Free discreet shipping is offered for orders more than $25 in the USA, more than $75 in Canada and more than $100 on other worldwide destinations.
For more, visit IMBesharam.com.
