For Indian female founders and CEOs, Kalaari Capital is levelling the playing field with its CXXO initiative. Launched in 2021, CXXO is built on the three main pillars of capital, community, and coaching.

For Neha Bagaria, the inspiration to launch JobsForHer—an online portal that helps women re-enter the workforce after a break—was her own experience with motherhood.

The Founder and MD of Kalaari Capital unveiled ‘CXXO State of Women Entrepreneurship Report 2023’ at SheSparks 2023. The report observed that a lot more work needs to be done to bring women entrepreneurship to par.

The State of Women Entrepreneurship Survey, 2023 is a stepping stone towards recognising and understanding unconscious biases and everyday challenges women in technology face.

Radhika Ghai Agarwal is the Chief Business Officer of ShopClues which offers everything from jewellery and clothing to technology and shoes. She has women the DNA Women Achievers Day Award in E-Commerce category.

Kalaari Capital’s CXXO initiative, in association with YourStory, will bring together women leaders and emerging talent from diverse backgrounds at the summit to build a dynamic community of empowered women.

The Twitter user shared a photo of samosas that he ordered from Samosa Party in Bangalore. The outlet explained the reason behind it.

With the weather gods rolling the dice, one’s coveted skincare routine can definitely go for a toss. Aside from dealing with fluctuating climate and pollution, for those of us struggling to fit in some ‘me time’ in the day, we have some good news. Unveiling the revolutionary world of Deconstruct — a skincare brand that is much more than just a product line. It’s a movement that is redefining the industry with its unparalleled approach to active ingredients and consumer education. And the brilliant mind behind this game-changing brand, who dared to challenge the status quo, is Malini Adapureddy.

Launched in 2021, aastey is a size-inclusive sustainable activewear brand for all women. From creating India’s first sustainable and size inclusive leggings to reaching a community of more than 60,00+ women across cities, aastey is making waves in the athleisure space.

Deconstruct Skincare, a Bengaluru-based startup, has raised $2 million in funding led by Kalaari Capital’s flagship program CXXO and Beenext.

Founded in 2021 by Malini Adapureddy, Deconstruct develops skincare products with the help of scientific research. The brand claims to adhere to the motto of “information over impulse” and wants to educate consumers about the ingredients in skincare products.

People who work with kids know how difficult it is to keep them engaged with online learning content. Creative Galileo keeps children hooked by adding in their favorite cartoon characters. The Singapore-based edtech platform announced today that it has raised $7.5 million in Series A funding from Kalaari Capital, East Ventures, Affirma Capital and angel investors.

Samosa is arguably the most popular street food in India. India’s favorite tea-time snack is transitioning from the neighborhood halwai to well-fitted and hip QSR stores, driven by Bengaluru-based food startup, Samosa Party.

Aastey, a sustainable athleisure brand for women of all body types has announced the closing of Rs 10 crore in seed round funding from CXXO, a Kalaari Capital platform aimed at backing women founders with a corpus of $10 million.

The foodie, who had worked at Gurugram and Mumbai before moving to Bengaluru, found himself perpetually gripped with the nostalgia for samosas. From small eateries to roadside food carts or even fancy cafes, nobody could even remotely come close to the product he consumed during his growing years.

kindlife.in, an online marketplace for new age beauty and wellness products, on December 13 announced that it has raised funds from Kalaari Capital and other prominent angel investors in its seed round.

Samosa Party has built an endearing brand on the back of great products. Products are available online or can be purchased at SP’s flagship stores. Central kitchens provide raw material and semi-finished produce to the outlets.

The investment was backed by early-stage venture capital firm Kalaari Capital through its CXXO program that seeks to invest in startups led by women. Kalaari Capital had started the CXXO programme in July and had earmarked $10 million for the same. In October, edtech startup Creative Galileo had raised $2.1 million through the CXXO programme to become its first beneficiary.

Creative Galileo, built for global learners aged 3-12, offers a gamified multi-verse to accelerate learning in an engaging manner using familiar and well-known characters to build strong foundational skills.

“Investing in the early years is one of the smartest things a country can do. Early childhood experiences have a profound impact on brain development – affecting learning, health, behavior and ultimately, lifetime opportunities” – World Bank

Edtech startup Creative Galileo has raised $2.5 million in a round led by Kalaari Capital contributing $2.1 million and remaining from angel investors such as Harish Bahl, Shashin Shah, Jinesh Patel, Atul Nishar, Ashwin Puri and Giridhar Malpani.

“CXXO can create access to coaching and capital for female founders, encouraging them to take more risks, and grow faster. If women know they have fair access to capital, they can stay focused on growth and innovation to stay ahead,” said Ankiti Bose, Co-founder & CEO, Zilingo.

Early stage venture firm Kalaari Capital said it will set aside $10 million (Rs 74.2 crore) annually to invest in startups led by women under its CXXO programme launched this year. The CXXO programme will create a cohort of eight to 10 female founders and CEOs each year and will provide them with capital and support, said CXXO in a statement.

Kalaari which has backed companies like Dream11, Snapdeal, Curefit, UrbanLadder and Myntra through its funds on July 28 also launched a dedicated $10 million fund to invest in startups that have women entrepreneurs and chief executives. This has been launched through its initiative CXXO with an aim to level the playing field for working women in India.

CXXO has set up a leadership team of female pathmakers to guide and spearhead this movement in the startup ecosystem. This team includes Kola, Zilingo co-founder and CEO Ankiti Bose, Microsoft Country Head Venture Capital and PE Partnerships Lathika Pai, Dream Sports Chief Communications and Public Affairs Officer Paroma Roy Chowdhury, Priyanka Gill (Founder and CEO, POPxo – Plixxo) and co-founder and President of MyGlamm, and Shradha Sharma (Founder and CEO of YourStory Media).

“Successful female founders as company builders serve an important role in Indian economic development. The CXXO programme will ensure there is no bias and discrimination on access to capital. We believe these founders will pioneer workplaces that are equitable and inclusive for more women to rise. At Kalaari, we have always believed in providing opportunities for diverse entrepreneurs to succeed,” said Vani Kola, Managing Director, Kalaari Capital.

The idea of the fund is to enable more women founders to be CEO’s of startups in shaping India’s digital future over the next decade.

Vani Kola-founded VC firm Kalaari Capital on Wednesday launched CXXO, an initiative that promotes and supports female founder-CEO-led startups in India by providing them unbiased access to capital, mentorship, and a community of other women founders and entrepreneurs.

The CXXO programme will create a cohort of eight to 10 female founders and CEOs each year and will provide them with capital and support, said CXXO in a statement.

Kalaari Capital on Wednesday launched CXXO, an initiative as part of which it has set aside $10 million (Rs 74 crore) annually, to invest in startups that have women founders as key decision-makers.