Indonesian eyewear brand SATURDAYS bags funding for local expansion

Indonesian eyewear brand, SATURDAYS, has secured Series A funding for an undisclosed amount led by Altara Ventures. DSG Consumer Partners and other affiliates also joined the round. With this new funding, SATURDAYS aims to accelerate its expansion across Indonesia, strengthen its tech-enabled omnichannel experience and deepen its product offering. In 2020, SATURDAYS received early-stage funding from local and regional venture capital firms Alpha JWC Ventures, Kinesys Group and Alto Partners. MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out for additional information.

SATURDAYS was founded to solve a large problem: nearly half of the Indonesian population needs vision correction but only a third are able to access or afford the prescription glasses and vision care services they require. Those who are able to afford glasses either overpay for branded eyewear designed for Western faces or have to contend with poor quality and/or fake branded eyewear with poor customer experience. The World Health Organisation released a study stating that a pair of eyewear can improve productivity by 30% and overall income by 20% in emerging countries.

“SATURDAYS offers affordable, high-quality eyewear designed to fit and look great on Asian consumers. Technology plays a key role in our omnichannel approach to provide convenience for customers to shop through our website, mobile app, chat, home try-on or stores. As a DTC brand, it is very important that we wow customers on the first encounter to create a lasting impression and enduring brand,” said SATURDAYS co-founder Andrew Kandolha

“We want to be the solution by providing access to eyewear to millions and bringing new vision through our tech-enabled omnichannel approach. We are excited to partner with great investors to support our mission to solve vision problems in Indonesia,” added SATURDAYS co-founder Rama Suparta.

Last year, it launched an app to offer an O2O experience for consumers. Known as SATURDAYS LIFESTYLE, the app touts a seamless booking experience for the home try-on service that brings licensed opticians, vision tests, and frames to the comfort of one’s home. Through the app, customers are able to book a home try-on date, and choose an appointment address, as well as select a specialty coffee. SATURDAYS technician will bring more than best selling frames for consumers to try on.SATURDAYS said previously that its home try-on strategy is inspired by US eyewear unicorn Warby Parker.

At the same time, offline stores play a key role in the discovery of new products, building brand equity, and developing trust and confidence with SATURDAYS customers. SATURDAYS currently has 15 stores – eight of which were opened in the last three months – in top-tier Indonesian malls, and aims to boost expansion over the next year.

Altara Ventures’ partner and CMO, Huiting Koh, said underneath SATURDAYS’ Millennial appeal - from brand partnerships such as Marvel and EVOS, to its hippie-chic in-store cafe serving great coffee and baked goods - is an efficient and sustainable business that aims to bring affordable eyewear services beyond Indonesia’s tier one cities.

Meanwhile, DSG Consumer Partners' head of Southeast Asia, Sameer Mehta, said SATURDAYS is poised to turn what has traditionally been a tactile, in-store sales experience into a digital-first DTC sales channel. "Between the value it offers, the quality of its distribution and consumer experience, and the unique benefits it offers to an Indonesian and Southeast Asian market, the decision to invest in SATURDAY was not difficult. We have seen other global DTC eyewear players in this space and we are excited to be partnering with SATURDAYS for its next phase of growth,” Mehta added.

Related article:
Indonesian eyewear brand SATURDAYS pushes O2O experience with new mobile app