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Key Takeaways
- Make sure your business has enough momentum for the fundraising course of.
- Pick the proper companions and buyers when raising money for your business.
- Have a solidified plan of how you plan to use the money from buyers.
“Growing up in Queens, I could never quite find clothes that felt like me. So I started making them. First for myself, mixing my mother’s saris with denim and leather. Then for friends and family. Then somehow, a whole community,” says Megha Rao, founder of holiCHIC. “The dream grew into something I could have never imagined. From Queens to Nordstrom, people are wearing holiCHIC blazers, saris, dresses and more around the world.”
As a former finance gross sales skilled, Rao had constructed a profitable business on her own for close to 10 years. As a buyer of Nordstrom, she couldn’t shake the feeling that holiCHIC and the retailer could be wonderful companions. After months and months of cold calling, she was ready to secure a pop-up store alternative at Nordstrom’s New York Flagship location in 2023, proper before Diwali.
“The pop-up show was a massive success, and we exceeded our expectations over those three days,” Rao says. “The opportunity led us to a meeting with the buyer, and then we went into an online partnership with Nordstrom.”
After bootstrapping holiCHIC for years, and building it into a seven-figure business, the model raised their first $1.5 million seed spherical in May 2026. Since then, gross sales are up 47%. Here are three questions Megha Rao encourages other founders to ask as they think about raising a seed spherical:
1. Does the business have momentum?
“My biggest fear was that we wouldn’t be able to keep up with the momentum after the success we have seen with Nordstrom,” Rao says. “After my team and I looked at the data, we saw that there was a growing segment of customers who identified as non-South Asian. They were wearing holiCHIC because they appreciated the style and quality.”
Rao wished financial assets obtainable when more alternatives arrived. She was proper about the momentum; Amazon Fashion came calling. Rao was open to working with them because she had determined to raise money.
2. Who do you need to associate with?
“Being bootstrapped is a rollercoaster ride,” says Rao. “You have one great month, and then next month there’s a lull, and your profit is eaten up. At the same time, it’s your business. You take inputs from others but you make the final call.”
Rao was open to bringing on more than one investor. She was launched to an angel investor, who after two conferences with Rao, wrote a test for the complete $1.5 million seed spherical. Rao says for her, partnering with one investor has been the best choice. If she had a number of buyers, that may have given her access to more networks, and she would have had to handle tons of completely different opinions.
“Our angel investor understands our vision. They respect and appreciate how we have grown our business steadily. It was really the right fit,” Rao says.
3. How will you use the money?
Rao wished to raise a seed spherical to scale holiCHIC. “I didn’t want to take outside funding to test and burn through investors’ cash,” says Rao. “I made plenty of mistakes early on when it came to product fit, shipping and more. We were ready to take on investors to grow different parts of the business.”
Rao had a clear imaginative and prescient of how holiCHIC will use the money. She plans to invest more in advertising and marketing and an influencer strategy. She’s centered on Amazon fashion and TikTok store. “We know we have a huge audience with women, and they usually have a plus one for events they are attending,” Rao shares. “We are doubling down on holiCHIC Men and concentrating on fit and style.”
Rao also has her sights set on turning into a globally acknowledged model, with the U.Ok., India and the Middle East on her checklist. But first comes the work in the U.S. and Canada. She’ll think about raising again once income hits over 5 occasions, and until then, her focus is on constant outcomes and growing holiCHIC’s retail presence, staff and product strains.
Rao’s advice to founders is easy: “Don’t raise money to find momentum. Raise money to fuel it.”
Key Takeaways
- Make sure your business has enough momentum for the fundraising course of.
- Pick the proper companions and buyers when raising money for your business.
- Have a solidified plan of how you plan to use the money from buyers.
“Growing up in Queens, I could never quite find clothes that felt like me. So I started making them. First for myself, mixing my mother’s saris with denim and leather. Then for friends and family. Then somehow, a whole community,” says Megha Rao, founder of holiCHIC. “The dream grew into something I could have never imagined. From Queens to Nordstrom, people are wearing holiCHIC blazers, saris, dresses and more around the world.”
As a former finance gross sales skilled, Rao had constructed a profitable business on her own for close to 10 years. As a buyer of Nordstrom, she couldn’t shake the feeling that holiCHIC and the retailer could be wonderful companions. After months and months of cold calling, she was ready to secure a pop-up store alternative at Nordstrom’s New York Flagship location in 2023, proper before Diwali.
“The pop-up show was a massive success, and we exceeded our expectations over those three days,” Rao says. “The opportunity led us to a meeting with the buyer, and then we went into an online partnership with Nordstrom.”