IDR 818 Billion Injected, Sociolla Beauty Startup Southeast Asia Expansion

Startup in the beauty sector, Social Bella Indonesia or Sociolla, received funding of IDR 818 billion from four investors led by L Catterton. The company also plans to expand its market in Southeast Asia.

L Catterton is an investment company and fund manager (private equity firm) headquartered in the United States (US). They provide funding to more than 200 companies in various segments and industries, one of which is LVMH.

This is the first time L Catterton has invested in Indonesia. Meanwhile, other participating investors are Indies Capital, East Ventures, and Jungle Ventures.

Indies Capital is an alternative multi-asset investment manager specializing in private credit investment for the SEA region. Then East Ventures and Jungle Ventures became Social Bella’s investors for the last few years.

“The cooperation and investment will boost our capabilities in presenting leading technology-based innovations, as well as the best products for customers in Indonesia, Vietnam, and other regions,” said Co-founder and President of Social Bella Christopher Madiam in a press release, Wednesday (5/5).

Sociolla Has a Good Record in the Beauty Industry

Principal at L Catterton and Investment Lead for Southeast Asia Yock Siong Tee assessed that the Social Bella team has shown a good track record in helping various beauty brands grow in Indonesia.

“We can’t wait to support Sociolla at the next stage of growth,” he said. Indies Capital Managing Partner Pandu Sjahrir added, Social Bella is able to answer the growing beauty and self-care needs of the community with a unique approach.

“This includes innovation in introducing the first omnichannel concept in Indonesia,” he said. Meanwhile, Harold Ong, Partner at Indies Capital, said that Social Bella has helped transform the retail landscape in Indonesia.

“We believe in the long-term sustainability of this business model,” he said. Willson Cuaca, Co-founder and Managing Partner at East Ventures noted, Social Bella grew significantly last year. This startup is adapting quickly during the corona pandemic.

He assessed that Sociolla has the factors that a beauty tech company needs to have, namely integrated content, community, commerce, and retail. “We are optimistic about the future potential and ready to continue to support Social Bella,” he said.

David Gowdey, Managing Partner at Jungle Ventures added, Social Bella has shown a solid track record in the beauty industry. “There has never been a beauty company with a comprehensive ecosystem like Social Bella,” he said.

Therefore, Jungle Ventures invests again in Sociolla. “With this new investment, we are excited to see the company’s extraordinary growth, as well as its readiness to win over the beauty industry in Southeast Asia,” he said.

Previously, Social Bella received funding from investors, including Temasek, Pavilion Capital and Jungle Ventures. Sociolla also officially entered the Vietnam market at the end of last year.

Opened 5 New Stores

Beauty-tech Social Bella opened five Sociolla Store stores earlier this year, located in five different cities, namely Mall of Indonesia Jakarta, Grand Galaxy Park Bekasi, Beachwalk Bali, Summarecon Mall Serpong, and Margo City Depok.

The five new locations chosen by the five shops were designed with uniqueness and different characteristics from one another to provide new nuances for beauty enthusiasts when visiting, such as a large beauty bar area, wall of masks, make-up walls and so on.

With the addition of these five new outlets, Sociolla currently has 20 stores in Indonesia and 1 shop in Vietnam, providing more than 330 brands of personal care and beauty products.

Sociolla Store itself is here as a shopping destination for modern beauty products supported by integrated technology and an omnichannel concept that will further pamper beauty enthusiasts in fulfilling the need for beauty products that are curated and certified by BPOM.