Actor Suniel Shetty invests in edtech firm Klassroom Edutech, known for its hybrid classroom model, and expresses interest in health startups, including bio-hacking ventures.
Actor Suniel Shetty has made an undisclosed investment to acquire a stake in the edtech firm Klassroom Edutech. The company focuses on a hybrid model of offline and online classroom teaching to drive revenue growth. Shetty, known for his roles as an actor, producer, and serial investor, is also interested in health startups, particularly those involved in bio-hacking.
Expressing his enthusiasm for the hybrid education model, Shetty mentioned its alignment with the National Education Policy. He believes that startups often possess strong ideas and funding but may lack marketing and reach, and he aims to bridge this gap by leveraging his expertise.
Klassroom Edutech, founded in 2016, is currently seeking pre-series A funding of $1 million, with plans to target $5 million for the series A round. The company caters to 60,000 students in 500 cities through 150 offline centres and has seen remarkable growth prospects, achieving 10X revenue growth in the last two years.
Shetty typically looks for 10-16% stake in startups he invests in and may consider higher stakes for early-stage ventures. He has an exit strategy in place and is content with 2x-3x returns, not solely focusing on unicorns.
Despite a drop in the edtech sector due to the pandemic’s impact, Shetty remains optimistic and open to investing in cash-positive startups, exploring opportunities beyond the education sector. He has previously invested in wellness, fitness, grooming, and hospitality ventures.
In a time when many actors are actively investing in startups, Shetty is evaluating various investment proposals and has expressed interest in health startups, particularly those focused on bio-hacking and preventive wellness.
The Indian impact investment market experienced a significant decline in the number of transactions, as per the report “2022 In Retrospect: Indian Impact Investment Trends.” The number of deals dropped from 38 in 2021 to 26 in 2022, showing a substantial decrease compared to the 61 deals recorded in 2020.
Actor Suniel Shetty expressed his willingness to invest in startups with positive cash flow, even if they are small in scale. While he has previously invested in the education sector, he now intends to explore opportunities in other sectors as well. Some of Shetty’s past investments include ventures in wellness, NFT, fitness, grooming, and hospitality industries.
Shetty emphasized, “If the startup is cash positive and even if it is small, I will jump in. I will look at more startups going ahead but not necessarily in the education sector.
