Homegrown Ventures

UAE-based Amaani, the parent company behind the beauty brand AÏZA by Amaani, has raised US$5 million in a Series A funding round that will support its expansion into Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar. UAE-based BECO Capital led the round, with participation from UAE-based Homegrown Ventures and Surge, the seed investment platform of India-based Peak XV Partners. This raise brings the total funding Amaani has raised since inception to $8 million. Founded in 2023 by Shubham Poddar, Amaani launched AÏZA in December 2024 as a skincare and haircare brand built around Arab heritage ingredients like dates, frankincense, black seed, and bakhoor, formulated in labs across South Korea, Japan, and Italy. In an interview with Inc. Arabia, Poddar, founder and CEO of Amaani, said that the idea for AÏZA emerged from his experience working in the region’s investment ecosystem, where he saw an opportunity to build a beauty brand from the Middle East for a global audience. “The Middle East is one of the world's most sophisticated consumers of global beauty,” Poddar noted. “People here spend more on beauty per capita than almost anywhere else. And yet, very few globally ambitious beauty brands had been built from this culture, and taken to the world. Not an adaptation of something Western. Not a cheaper alternative. Something original, rooted in the ingredients and rituals that have existed here for centuries.” It is this balance between regional authenticity and global ambition that Poddar sees as central to AÏZA’s proposition. “What makes AÏZA different is that we combine something most global brands can never replicate—a deep understanding of this consumer, this culture, and what she actually needs—with the team, the standards, and the ambition to build it at the level of the world's best beauty brands,” he explained. “We're not building a regional brand. We're building a global brand that starts here.” More insights from Poddar in our full article--check it out using the link in this post's comments!

UAE-based Amaani, the parent company behind the beauty brand AÏZA by Amaani, has raised US$5 million in a Series A funding round that will support its expansion into Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar. UAE-based BECO Capital led the round, with participation from UAE-based Homegrown Ventures and Surge, the seed investment platform of India-based Peak XV Partners. This raise brings the total funding Amaani has raised since inception to $8 million. Founded in 2023 by Shubham Poddar, Amaani launched AÏZA in December 2024 as a skincare and haircare brand built around Arab heritage ingredients like dates, frankincense, black seed, and bakhoor, formulated in labs across South Korea, Japan, and Italy. In an interview with Inc. Arabia, Poddar, founder and CEO of Amaani, said that the idea for AÏZA emerged from his experience working in the region’s investment ecosystem, where he saw an opportunity to build a beauty brand from the Middle East for a global audience. “The Middle East is one of the world's most sophisticated consumers of global beauty,” Poddar noted. “People here spend more on beauty per capita than almost anywhere else. And yet, very few globally ambitious beauty brands had been built from this culture, and taken to the world. Not an adaptation of something Western. Not a cheaper alternative. Something original, rooted in the ingredients and rituals that have existed here for centuries.” It is this balance between regional authenticity and global ambition that Poddar sees as central to AÏZA’s proposition. “What makes AÏZA different is that we combine something most global brands can never replicate—a deep understanding of this consumer, this culture, and what she actually needs—with the team, the standards, and the ambition to build it at the level of the world's best beauty brands,” he explained. “We're not building a regional brand. We're building a global brand that starts here.” More insights from Poddar in our full article--check it out using the link in this post's comments!

Dubai-based beauty and wellness startup AÏZA by Amaani has raised $5 million in Series A funding, led by BECO Capital with participation from Homegrown Ventures and Peak XV Partners. The capital will support the expansion of its beauty brand AÏZA across the GCC, starting with Saudi Arabia, followed by Kuwait and Qatar, alongside investment in product development, talent and technology. Founded by Shubham Poddar Amaani launched AÏZA in December 2024. The company says the brand’s net revenue grew more than 9x year on year in the first half of 2026. AÏZA has built its range around ingredients familiar across the region, including dates, black seed, frankincense, rose and bakhoor, with formulations developed in laboratories in Korea, Japan and Italy. Its products are currently sold through its own website, Ounass and Ulta Beauty Ulta Beauty in the UAE. The round adds another regional beauty brand to watch as Saudi Arabia becomes the next major market in its expansion.

A listing is not distribution. Rate of sale is. Today, AÏZA by Amaani announced its $5 million Series A. Being an investor, one of the numbers that gave us conviction was less headline friendly: how the products sell once they are on the shelf. Founders rightly celebrate when a retailer says yes. But what matters next is units sold per store, week after week, long after the launch push ends. Retailers make their space decisions on that number. That is why AÏZA ranking among the top 10 of more than 300 brands at Ulta Beauty in the UAE means so much to us. It reflects products that consumers are choosing. Behind those products is a lot of hard operational work. Formulating with distinctive regional ingredients, managing suppliers and lead times, and meeting different requirements across markets all have to come together. Get the timing wrong, and a growing brand can run out of stock just when demand takes off. Now AÏZA is live in Saudi Arabia at Ulta Beauty in Red Sea Mall, Jeddah, and Riyadh Park, Riyadh. It is already moving fast. Helping the team navigate the next stage of retail growth is exactly the kind of work we love doing at Homegrown Ventures. Proud to back Shubham Poddar and the AÏZA by Amaani team alongside BECO Capitaltal and Peak XV Partners. Congratulations to everyone who made this milestone possible! https://lnkd.in/eXXwwR7D

🚨 Dubai-based consumer company AMAANI, the owner of beauty brand AÏZA by Amaani, has raised a $5M Series A led by BECO Capital to expand across the GCC, with Saudi Arabia its next priority market. Homegrown Ventures and Peak XV Partners’ Surge also participated, bringing Amaani’s total funding to $8 million. The company will use the capital for regional expansion, product development, hiring and the technology supporting its operations. The round follows the $3 million seed investment led by Surge in September 2025. Since then, AÏZA has expanded from an online-first business into regional retail, with products now sold through its own website, Ounass and Ulta Beauty in the UAE. Founded in 2023 by Shubham Poddar, Amaani says AÏZA’s net revenue grew more than ninefold year-on-year in the first half of 2026. 📌 Full story here: https://lnkd.in/dMnCg5fr #funding #mena #uae #beauty #ecomm #seriesa #vc #startup

شركة AÏZA by Amaani الإماراتية تغلق جولة استثمارية (Series A) بقيمة 5 ملايين دولار - تطور Amaani علامات تجارية استهلاكية وتعد العلامة التجارية AÏZA للعناية بالبشرة والشعر أولى علاماتها وأطلقتها في ديسمبر 2024. - تعتمد منتجاتها على مكونات إقليمية مثل التمر والحبة السوداء واللبان والورد، وتُطور عبر مختبرات في كوريا واليابان وإيطاليا، وفقًا لبيانها. فيما تستخدم الذكاء الاصطناعي في تحليل بيانات العملاء والتسويق والتخطيط التشغيلي. - سبق لها إغلاق جولة استثمارية (Seed) بقيمة 3 ملايين دولار في سبتمبر 2025 بقيادة Surge، ليصل إجمالي تمويلاتها الحالية إلى 8 ملايين دولار. - ستستخدم الاستثمار للتوجه للسوق السعودية بإطلاق منتجاتها في محلات Ulta Beauty في جدة والرياض بنهاية سبتمبر، والتوسع في الكويت وقطر خلال الربع الرابع، إلى جانب الاستثمار في تطوير المنتجات والبنية التحتية التقنية. - قادت الجولة BECO Capital، وبمشاركة Homegrown Ventures وSurge التي قادت جولتها السابقة. - أسس شوبهام بودار Shubham Poddar Amaani في عام 2023.

A Middle Eastern #BeautyBrand is scaling from Dubai into the GCC, with Saudi Arabia next 💄 #Amaani, the Dubai-based parent company of AÏZA by Amaani, has raised $5M in #SeriesA funding led by BECO Capital, with participation from Homegrown Ventures and Peak XV Partners's Surge. #FundingNews Founded by Shubham Poddar, #AÏZA has raised $8M to date and is now accelerating its regional #RetailExpansion. The growth numbers stand out: 📈 9x+ H1 2026 net revenue growth YoY 💰 $8M total capital raised 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia launches in Jeddah and Riyadh 🇰🇼🇶🇦 Kuwait and Qatar planned for Q4 2026 🛍️ Already available through Ounass and Ulta Beauty UAE But AÏZA’s story goes beyond #Retail expansion. The brand is building #BeautyProducts around ingredients and rituals associated with the Arab world, including dates, black seed, frankincense, rose and 𝘣𝘢𝘬𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘳, while developing formulations with laboratories in Korea, Japan and Italy. The ambition? Build a beauty company from the #MiddleEast that can compete in international markets. 📌 Full story: https://lnkd.in/gyAqv3Jn 🪞 Explore AÏZA's startup profile, funding history, investors and ecosystem connections on our platform: https://lnkd.in/gvb47JVB ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ #BeautyTech #BeautyIndustry #ConsumerBrands #D2C #BeautyStartups #LucidityInsights

Amaani, a Dubai-headquartered consumer company behind the beauty brand AÏZA by Amaani, has raised US$5 million in Series A funding to support its expansion across the GCC, particularly Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar. The round was led by BECO Capital, a Gulf-focused institutional venture capital firm, with participation from Homegrown Ventures and Peak XV’s Surge, taking Amaani’s total funding to US$8 million. Saudi Arabia will be the priority market, with AÏZA scheduled to launch through Ulta Beauty at Red Sea Mall in Jeddah and Riyadh Park in Riyadh at the end of September. Kuwait and Qatar are expected to follow in the fourth quarter of 2026. “This funding allows us to deepen what we have built in the UAE, expand across the GCC and begin proving that a brand born here can travel far beyond it,” Shubham Poddar, founder and CEO, Amaani, said. Read more HERE: https://lnkd.in/dUqWzwCh

I’m excited to join the Founders Meet at Future Food Forum 2026 to talk about a challenge close to my heart: helping promising brands turn early traction into lasting growth. We’ll get into the practical questions founders face as they scale: raising capital, building supply chains, reaching the right customers and continuing to innovate. I’m looking forward to sharing the stage with Taher Mansour, Seda Solmaz and Graham Burne, with Sascha Dutta (nee Taylor) moderating the conversation. 📅 30 September 2026 at 9am 📍 Le Méridien Dubai Hotel & Conference Centre If you’ll be there, let’s connect. UAE Food & Beverage Manufacturers Group ; UAE Food Cluster ; Homegrown Ventures #FutureFoodForum2026 #FoundersMeet #SMEGrowth #FoodAndBeverage #Homegrown #FMCG #CPG

Today we are announcing our investment in AÏZA by Amaani, and our first in beauty. The Gulf is one of the world's most sophisticated beauty consumers and one of its smallest producers. For decades, the region's own ingredients and rituals travelled out as inspiration for brands built elsewhere, then came back as imported products at full price. That inversion is the opportunity. AÏZA is built the other way. Regional ingredients, including dates, black seed, frankincense, rose and bakhoor, are developed & formulated to leading global clean beauty standards. In the first half of 2026, net revenue grew more than 9x year-on-year. The brand ranks in the top 10 out of more than 300 global and regional brands at Ulta Beauty in the UAE, and is the first and only Middle Eastern brand named to BeautyMatter NEXT50. The $5M Series A is led by BECO Capital, with Homegrown Ventures and Peak XV Partners participating. The capital funds UAE expansion, Saudi Arabia acceleration, and with Kuwait and Qatar to follow. We back founders building consumer brands from this region for the world, and we back them with more than capital: category expertise, retailer and distributor access, and people who have run these supply chains before. Welcome to the portfolio, Shubham Poddar and the AÏZA team! Ahmad Shamieh Nader Amiri - نادر أميري Salvatore Caizzone Tarun Sabhlok Wael KASKAS Mohamad Khachab Imraan Karim