Online furniture company Furlenco expands to Mumbai, eyes tier 2 cities next

Furlenco, a Bengaluru-based online premium home furniture rental company has launched operations in Mumbai last month. Founded in 2012 as s RentUrDuniya in 2012 and rebranded Furlenco later, the company was founded on account of the angst Ajith Mohan, the Founder faced when he had to sell off his furniture in the US before relocating to India. To get new furniture while settling down in India was a problem, relates Mohan, on account of delivery issues. It was then that he thought of renting furniture as a solution as he claims there were no businesses offering quality furniture for rent. [caption id=“attachment_2520510” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Ajith Mohan, Founder & CEO, Furlenco[/caption] It raised Rs 38 crore Series A funding from Lightbox Ventures early this year. The company has since then been able to garner an active customer base of 2000 and is growing at 20 percent month-on-month, says Mohan. Business Model The company caters to the 22-34 year age group, who shift cities on account of jobs. The billion dollar per category industry statistics reveals that an average Indian working professional moves cities every three years and that’s when buying or renting furniture comes into picture. The company is targeting an approximate 1.45 crore households of this group in India. “We hold asset and rent it out for monthly subscription. The rental revenue is a percentage of the actual asset value,” says Mohan, adding that the model is ‘innovational’. Furlenco rents out furniture with matching furnishings and decor on a monthly subscription fee. The service also includes free doorstep delivery and installation. The company promises deliveries within 72 hours of an order being placed with the flexibility to swap/return furniture annually based on need. After providing documentation for verification, a customer has to sign a contract and pay a month’s rental as deposit which is refundable. The customer is covered for wear and tear of furniture for up to Rs 10,000. Customer base “In Bangalore where we have 95 percent of our customer-base currently, we are already operationally profitable,” says Mohan. Furlenco is on the look out for Series B funding, a “significant majority of the same will be invested in procuring furniture,” adds Mohan. The company plans to expand its presence next to Gurgaon, Pune and Hyderabad.