Neso Brands raises $100 mn in Seed fund; appoints Bjorn Bergstrom as CEO

Eyewear house Neso Brands on Monday said it has raised more than $100 million (around Rs 775 crore) in Seed fund from several investors, including KKR, Softbank, Alpha Wave Global and Temasek.

A subsidiary of Softbank-backed eyewear company Lenskart, Neso Brands will partner and invest in consumer eyewear brands around the world and grow these brands by leveraging synergies across the Lenskart Group to accelerate international expansion.

''With this investment in Neso Brands, we want to accelerate our mission of transforming the way people see and experience the world. It is our firm belief that the eyewear brands of today will not be brands of the future. And Neso is our initiative to partner with founders globally to help create eyewear brands of the future,'' Lenskart CEO Peyush Bansal said in a statement.

Based in Singapore, Neso was founded in 2022.

New CEO

Neso Brands also announced that Bjorn Bergstrom has joined the founding team as CEO.

''By investing in the most promising new brands in the industry and leveraging centralized resources across technology, manufacturing and distribution, Neso Brands will be uniquely positioned to scale the eyewear brands of the future. I am very much looking forward to leading the company on this journey and working closely together with our investors and partners'', Bergstrom said.

Before joining Neso, he served as chief growth officer and interim chief product and technology Officer for the global fashion brand NA-KD. Based out of Sweden and launched in 2016, NA-KD expanded to more than 100 markets and reached net sales of over $200 million in just five years.

(With PTI inputs)

Published on: Monday, May 16, 2022, 10:20 PM IST