Fireside Ventures, an early backer of D2C brands such as Mamaearth and boAt, is now eyeing opportunities in the travel and sustainability space. In this interview, co-founder and partner VS Kannan Sitaram tells Narayanan V about its fundraising plans, slowdown in consumer startup IPOs and more. Excerpts:
VCs are seen favouring consumer startups over deep tech. Is that a fair criticism?
I think the more relevant question is whether consumer startups — be it food delivery or fancy ice cream startups — have created any value? The answer is clearly yes. They have done it not at the expense of startups in other sectors. Their growth is driven by rising consumption. As people earn more, they want to consume more — and consumer startups are simply enabling that. These companies have also created tens of thousands of jobs, be it delivery agents, warehouse managers, and logistics and supply chain executives. These roles wouldn’t exist at this scale otherwise. Plus, they generate significant tax revenue in the forms of GST and income tax. I don’t think backing consumer startups and supporting deep tech are mutually exclusive. The better question is: why don’t we see more deep tech startups? Is it that they’re not being created, or are they being built but not noticed? That’s something that I don’t have an answer for.
Will Fireside invest in deep tech startups?
There are plenty of investors who back both deep tech and consumer startups — and there’s enough capital available for both. That said, at Fireside, we won’t be investing in deep tech. Our mandate is clear: we raise capital from our limited partners (LPs) specifically to invest in consumer businesses. Our focus will firmly remain on digitally-oriented, capital-efficient consumer companies. Within that space, we’re actively exploring different sectors and opportunities.
What are the sectors you’re focusing on?
We have backed consumer startups across categories like beauty and personal care, platform enablers, and food and beverage. One key area of interest for us is health and wellness. We’re seeing a strong shift — especially among millennials and Gen Z — towards prioritising health and wellbeing. A visible early trend in this space is the growing demand for supplements.
We have expanded our portfolio here with investments in companies like Kapiva, Traya, Gynoveda, Amaha Health, and Fitterfly. We’ve also made investments in go-to-market enablers within the consumer space. For instance, Ripplr focuses on sales and distribution, Rozana is building a rural distribution network, and Smytten is helping brands drive sampling-led discovery.
Any new themes in focus?
Sustainability is a big theme we believe will gain significant traction in India over the next few years. Younger consumers are already leaning toward brands with sustainability claims — and like in the West, we expect they’ll eventually be willing to pay a premium for them. Concepts like “beauty without cruelty” are picking up, and the sentiment is clearly growing.
Travel is another space we’re tracking. Flights are full, resorts are packed, and international travel is booming. It’s a strong trend, and we’re thinking about what kinds of businesses could emerge from this surge in demand. These are early signs, but both sustainability and travel could become focus areas for future investments.
Are you looking at fundraising?
Not at the moment. So far, we’ve raised three funds — $50 million, $118 million, and $225 million — with a current portfolio of 53 brands. We’re currently deploying capital from our third fund and expect to do another 8-9 deals from it. Only after completing the portfolio construction for Fund III, will we be allowed to raise Fund IV. We expect to complete Fund III deployment over the next year. Only after that will we start thinking about the next fund. Also, we don’t believe in writing first cheques from two funds at the same time—it creates a potential conflict of interest.
IPOs in the consumer startup space have dried up. Will the slowdown continue?
I think we’ll see plenty of IPOs coming up. From what I hear, the total valuation of consumer-oriented companies expected to list this financial year is around $34 billion — not the amount being raised, but the combined valuation of those companies. That’s a sizable number. Of course, timing will depend on market sentiment. No one wants to be caught off guard by global events like the Trump disruption, for instance. But many companies are actively preparing: filing draft papers, engaging bankers, and doing the groundwork needed to be IPO-ready. Once markets stabilise and volatility eases a bit, I believe the IPO pipeline will open up.
Are foreign LPs reluctant to invest amid tariff uncertainties?
At least on the consumer side, I can say that investors are looking at India’s long-term consumption story — and that’s not going to be impacted by what’s happening in the US right now. LPs see that India’s consumption fundamentals are intact.
The second thing they’re convinced about is the stability of India’s policy framework. Many of them have moved away from investing in China — not as a knee-jerk reaction, but because under the current regime, the policy environment has become unpredictable. For example, companies close to IPOs are suddenly pulled back. In contrast, there’s a belief that India’s framework is relatively stable, and even if there are changes, they’re unlikely to be as disruptive. Most importantly, LPs are seeing real exit opportunities here —through IPOs, strategic deals, and financial investor activity. So exits are no longer a question mark in their minds. All of these together create a favourable ground for continued investment in India.