Good Glamm Group, an Indian beauty and personal care startup, has acquired Bulbul, a social media-based e-commerce platform founded by MakeMyTrip (MMT) co-founder Sachin Bhatia. The deal is expected to help Good Glamm boost its e-commerce capabilities and expand its customer base. Founded in 2018, Bulbul enables small businesses to sell their products through social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and WhatsApp. It has more than 100,000 sellers offering items ranging from clothes and accessories to home décor and electronics. The startup has raised $14.7m to date, including a $8.7m Series A round in 2020 led by Sequoia Capital.
Good Glamm was founded in 2018 by Sujal Shah and Anirudh Gupta, and offers a range of beauty and personal care products through its brands MyGlamm and POPxo. Earlier this year, it raised $71m in a funding round led by Ascent Capital, which valued the company at $500m. The Bulbul acquisition comes just months after Good Glamm acquired on-demand beauty services platform Housejoy for an undisclosed amount.
In a statement, Good Glamm said the Bulbul acquisition would enable it to “effectively democratise social commerce in India, making it accessible to all businesses regardless of size and scale”. Bhatia will join Good Glamm’s board as a director, and Bulbul’s team will be absorbed into Good Glamm.
Commenting on the deal, Bhatia said: “Our platform will become a part of Good Glamm’s fast-expanding beauty and lifestyle omnichannel business. I am confident that joining forces will strengthen our market position and accelerate our growth.”
The acquisition is in line with Good Glamm’s plans to become a leader in India’s beauty and personal care industry, which is expected to reach $23.8bn by 2025, according to research firm RedSeer. By leveraging Bulbul’s social commerce capabilities, Good Glamm aims to tap into the growing trend of consumers buying products through social media platforms.
The acquisition also reflects the wider trend of e-commerce players looking to expand into social commerce, which is gaining traction in India. Last month, Facebook-owned WhatsApp began offering its Indian users the ability to purchase products from local businesses through its platform, while e-commerce giant Amazon has launched social commerce features in the country.
Meanwhile, MMT, which Bhatia co-founded with Deep Kalra in 2000, has shifted its focus to the travel sector after selling its entire stake in Ibibo Group, which owned several online properties including e-commerce platform redBus and home-sharing platform Stayzilla. In 2017, MMT acquired rival travel booking site Goibibo in a deal reportedly worth $1.8bn.