Whizzo Raises $15 Mn To Expand R&D, Supply Chain
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Whizzo, on Tuesday, said that it has raised USD 15 million in Series-A round led by Fundamentum. The round also saw participation from Korea-based LB Investment, a deep-tech-focused global investor, making its first direct investment in India, and existing investors Lightspeed and BEENEXT. The fresh capital will enable Whizzo to enter the next phase of materials science innovation, with investment in fundamental research and the development of in-house IP. The company will also strengthen its supply-chain and R&D capabilities across India, Vietnam, China, Bangladesh, and Indonesia as well as expand its science and engineering team with researchers specialising in non-woven technologies and composites.
Technical textiles are engineered, high-performance materials used across infrastructure, agriculture, protective wear, and various other industrial applications. The category has been expanding steadily with the global technical textiles market currently valued at over USD 250 billion and based on segment application growing at an aggressive CAGR of 12-14% per annum, the global market size is expected to surpass 400 Billion USD by 2030. Despite this growing demand, the technical textiles industry remains underserved in early-stage innovation, with commercial manufacturers offering limited flexibility for prototyping and multiple product iterations. This often places the burden of development on customers and slows down time-to-market. Whizzo is addressing this gap through its unique CDMO model enabling customers to move from concept to production significantly faster and delivering orders at 4X pace of current market’s delivery timelines.
Founded in 2024 by Zetwerk alum Shrestha Kukreja, Whizzo is India’s first CDMO (Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization) platform for technical textiles manufacturing. The platform integrates R&D, formulation, prototyping, process engineering, and commercial-scale manufacturing all under one roof. Whizzo works with B2B manufacturers across a wide range of applications, including geotextiles, agriculture textiles, protective and flame-retardant materials, specialty yarns, engineered apparel textiles, and industrial composites. The firm currently has partnership with 120+ SMEs and MSME manufacturers and exports to 15+ countries. In the next 12 months, the firm aims to double its global footprint and expand its manufacturing network.
Announcing the latest round of funding Shrestha Kukreja, Founder of Whizzo, said, “With nearly 40% of our revenue already coming from exports, this funding will enable us to further accelerate our materials science initiatives and scale our manufacturing network to meet global demand. Today, we work with over 120 SME and MSME manufacturers and expect to expand this to 200+ by the end of the financial year. We are also doubling down on our exports, moving from 15 markets to 30+ in the next 12 months. Alongside strengthening our supply-chain, we will invest in upstream IP, expand our science and engineering teams, and build for faster development cycles with predictable quality.”
Whizzo is backed by a 65-member team, with 10% dedicated to research, including scientists and engineers specialising in polymer science, process engineering, characterization, sustainability, and advanced textile technologies. Whizzo’s materials science lab in Gurgaon leads the company’s R&D efforts, and the firm will begin filing patents as its fundamental research pipeline matures.
According to Ashish Kumar, Cofounder and General Partner, Fundamentum who is joining the board of Whizzo, “Whizzo is a standout example of Fundamentum’s Applied DeepTech thesis in the B2B supply-chain domain — a business scaling rapidly while building defensible innovation at its core. Shrestha and his team have deep expertise, strong execution discipline and a clear product-led culture, all of which show in their rising market share. The materials-science lab in particular is Whizzo’s strong long-term moat, enabling upstream research, rapid iteration, and IP creation. This capability has the potential to place India firmly on the global map for innovation in technical textiles. We’re thrilled to partner with this category-defining company in their next phase of their journey.”
According to Alex Lee, Head of Global Investment at LB Investment, “Whizzo is a CDMO platform built with materials science at its core, bringing research, formulation, prototyping, and manufacturing together within a single structure. This integrated approach helps shorten development cycles and improve execution in technical textiles. As a Korea-based deep-tech investor, we see Whizzo’s growing materials science capabilities and IP-focused mindset as important foundations for building differentiation over time. Whizzo reflects how technology-enabled manufacturing can evolve into a competitive global business.”
