MAM
Virurl raises $1.2 mn in seed financing
MUMBAI: Viral advertising platform Virurl announced the closing of a $1.2 million seed funding round and launch of its public beta.
The financing was led by Tice Capital LLC, a Dallas investment company focusing on the technology and media categories, and Los Angeles Syndicate of Technology.
The platform allows brands and media owners to instantly launch viral campaigns by incentivising Web users to share links with their friends.
MSNBC.com’s founding director Merrill Brownwill be joining Virurl as its chairman. Brown is a New York-based consultant and advisor. He has helped launch numerous early stage ventures and is advisor to various companies in the advertising, marketing and digital media fields.
Brown said, “Virurl users have already delivered more than 1.7 million clicks to media across the web while collecting over $20,000 in earnings for themselves. With our seed financing closed, we look forward to continuing our rapid growth while investing in tools to help give publishers, brands and entrepreneurs an opportunity to quickly syndicate their content on the Web.”
Additionally, Virurl has also roped in diverdified media and entertainment company Indomitable Entertainment to help out in developing strategic partnerships and engaging customers and clients. As a result, the entertainment firm’s CEO Dominic Ianno will join the board while its digital media head Boyd Bishop will work closely with Virurl on its business development efforts.
Virurl CEO and co-founder Francisco Diaz-Mitoma said, “We know that people are social, and that the Web is social, so it makes sense that ads should be social as well. The holy grail for brand advertisers is having a piece of their content go viral — it really is about peer-to-peer sharing and with Virurl, we‘ve created an online marketplace that makes that possible in under 60 seconds.”
Indomitable Entertainment head of corporate development Mathew Guliner said, “We believe Virurl has a unique and effective vision for viral marketing that will significantly impact advertising and web analytics. In the past few years, we have seen how peer-to-peer sharing is vital for a brand‘s success in the marketplace, and as a result, we are firm believers that Virurl will ultimately alter the future of advertising both domestically and internationally.”
Virurl was founded by Francisco Diaz-Mitoma, who also founded the social gaming company Titan Gaming (now Playsino), and web entrepreneur Tim Symington. It is an online marketplace that allows brands to create instant viral marketing and advertising campaigns on the web. The platform enables marketers to launch global viral campaigns by compensating Internet users to share videos, articles, music, promotional material and other media with their friends via digital formats such as email, or social networks.
Virurl launched their alpha version in late 2011 and currently serves more than 40,000 registered users enabling brands to leverage web users to begin the online social sharing process.
Brands
Kwality Wall’s reports standalone losses following strategic HUL demerger
Ice cream major faces Rs 64 crore Ebitda loss amid commodity inflation and muted Q3 sales
MUMBAI: Kwality Wall’s (India) Limited (KWIL) has released its first set of financial results as a standalone entity, revealing a challenging start to its independent journey. Following its successful demerger from Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) on 1st December 2025 and its subsequent listing on 16th February 2026, the company is navigating a transition period marked by structural changes and high input costs.
For the quarter ended 31st December 2025, the company reported revenue of Rs 222 crores. Despite the revenue base, the bottom line was impacted by several factors, resulting in an Ebitda loss of Rs 64.2 crores. When calculated on a Pre-IND AS 116 basis, the Ebitda loss stood at Rs 83.8 crores.
Organic Sales Growth (OSG) declined by 6.5 per cent year-on-year during the quarter. Volume growth, however, saw a marginal increase of 1.2 per cent. The company reported a gross margin of 41.5 per cent. Additionally, exceptional expenses amounting to Rs 94 crores were recorded, primarily linked to non-recurring costs during the transition phase.
Performance across portfolios and channels was mixed. Within the impulse portfolio, brands such as Magnum and Cornetto recorded mid-single digit volume growth, indicating steady demand in on-the-go consumption. However, the in-home portfolio, which includes take-home packs, experienced muted consumption. The company is planning a relaunch of this category with improved offerings ahead of the 2026 season.
Quick commerce (Q-Com) continued to emerge as a strong growth driver, delivering robust double-digit growth during the quarter. Meanwhile, the company also expanded its physical distribution network by increasing the number of company-owned cabinets across markets.
Margin pressure during the quarter was driven by a combination of one-off factors and broader cost inflation. Gross margins were impacted by around 600 basis points due to trade investments made for stock liquidation. Additionally, cocoa price inflation contributed to another 400 basis points of pressure on margins.
Deputy managing director Chitrank Goel attributed the muted performance partly to prolonged monsoons and transitional challenges linked to the GST framework. Operating expenses also increased as the company invested in establishing its standalone supply chain, operational systems and corporate infrastructure following the demerger.
Looking ahead, the management remains focused on a volume-driven growth strategy. To restore profitability, the company has initiated a cost productivity programme aimed at reducing non-consumer-facing costs. It is also working on building regional manufacturing networks to optimise logistics expenses and improve operational efficiency.
The commodity outlook for the near term remains mixed. Dairy prices are expected to remain firm due to tight supply conditions and rising fodder costs. Sugar prices may also move higher following increases in the Minimum Selling Price (MSP). While cocoa prices have moderated recently, currency depreciation has offset some of the potential cost relief for the company.
