For more than a decade, Furlenco has played in a tricky corner of the consumer economy—renting furniture to customers who don’t want to commit to ownership. The model sounded perfect for India’s urban millennial workforce: flexible, asset-light living with monthly plans instead of heavy upfront purchases.
But that dream came at a cost. The company spent years burning cash, scaling fast, and relying heavily on debt—notably during Covid—when demand stalled and capital tightened.
This week, the story took a sharp turn.
Furlenco has raised ₹90 Cr, led by its major backer Sheela Foam, with participation from Whiteoak and veteran investor Madhu Kela. More importantly, the startup posted its first-ever profit—₹3.1 Cr in FY25, versus a steep ₹130.2 Cr net loss in FY24.
Furlenco has raised funds in this latest round at a price of ₹149.03 per share, valuing the company at approximately ₹1,048 crore.
So what changed?
Founded in 2012 in Bengaluru, Furlenco began as a pure-play rental platform targeting mobile professionals who preferred convenience over ownership.
Over time, the model evolved into something broader:
The strategy was simple: own the full lifecycle of a furniture asset—rent it, refurbish it, resell it, and even buy it back.
This allowed the company to build multiple revenue streams beyond monthly rentals.
The pandemic was a breaking point.
Reduced mobility, high inventory ownership, and dependence on debt pushed the company to the edge. Founder Ajith Mohan Karimpana later called debt funding:
"My life’s worst decision."
The turnaround began in 2023 when Sheela Foam (owner of Sleepwell) acquired a 35% stake for ₹300 Cr, valuing House of Kieraya (HKL) at ~₹1,000 Cr.
That strategic partnership changed Furlenco’s financial discipline.
Furlenco’s numbers now tell a different story.
Two big levers drove the turnaround:
Higher asset utilisation (more rental cycles per product)
Lower customer acquisition cost through bundled plans and improved retention
Today, Furlenco earns:
70% from rentals
25% from appliances
5% from new furniture retail
Furlenco is now planning:
₹370 Cr revenue and ₹37 Cr profit this financial year.
₹100 Cr profit before filing for an IPO post FY27.
Growth drivers include:
Expanding the "Furlenco Kids" line
Acquiring high-lifetime-value premium customers
Entering new geographies
Furlenco operates in a space with players like Rentomojo and Rentickle, but its full-cycle asset strategy—rent → refurbish → resell → upgrade—gives it a structural efficiency advantage.
If it scales efficiently, the rental model may finally prove financially viable at national scale.
After a decade of pivots, debt, and operational complexity, Furlenco has finally cracked the economics. The latest fundraise isn’t just capital—it’s validation.
The company now believes it has a realistic runway to becoming IPO-ready within the next two years.
Whether public markets agree is a question for later.
For now, Furlenco’s comeback marks something rare in India’s startup landscape:
A business that didn’t quit—just evolved.
