SAIF Partner has invested in Zovi, an online apparel store which also has Deep Kalra (of MakeMyTrip) as an investor.
Set up as an entrepreneur-in-residence project (EIR) where the venture fund picks an entrepreneur to execute a pre-conceived idea, Zovi.com will hawk a range of men’s apparel designed in-house by a team led by Sartaj Mehta, former design head of Benetton India. Chosen to be the EIR for the new firm, Satish Mani, former chief technology officer at online travel portal Cleartrip.com, will drive operations at the company that aims to broaden its product range to include women’s apparel by end 2011.[ET]
Mangrove Capital Partners To Invest In BeStylish, Smile Interactive Venture
European early stage firm Mangrove Capital Partners is entering India and has invested in BeStylish, a Smile Interactive venture. Smile group runs other ecommerce portals like FashionAndYou and DealsAndYou and while they focus on niche deals. BeStylish focuses on selling shoes online.[source]
CustomerXPs Software raises $4 million
The five-year-old firm has raised $4 million from a fund managed by Singapore-based JAFCO Investment (Asia Pacific), which has $730 million in funds under management. The Bangalore-based start-up, founded by a team that was earlier part of the products division at information technology major Infosys, has built a software product based on artificial intelligence and psychology. It is now live on the portals of ICICI Bank and is expected to rake in a slew of new customers across telecom, retail, insurance, healthcare and airline industries.[source]
