Distil

Distil is an R&D-led specialty chemicals platform founded in 2023 by Atanuu Agarrwal, Karan Hirani, and Viraj Shah. The company, officially registered as Ch101 Market Private Limited in Mumbai, India, offers end-to-end services including research, custom formulation, manufacturing, supply chain logistics, and compliance. Distil operates an asset-light business model, collaborating with a network of over 15 small and mid-sized manufacturing plants in India to enhance their efficiency and global competitiveness. This strategy allows the company to scale production from gram to ton scale without significant capital expenditure.

The company serves over 100 enterprise clients across various sectors, including paints and coatings, plastics, construction, aroma and food, beauty and personal care, and pharmaceuticals. Distil's value proposition includes providing tailored formulations, managing the full supply chain, offering after-sales technical support, and eliminating minimum order quantity (MOQ) requirements. Its business model focuses on addressing supply chain inefficiencies such as fragmentation, unreliable quality, and long lead times. The company generates revenue through the sale of its products and services, reporting $7 million in annual sales.

Distil has secured significant funding to fuel its growth. In March 2024, it raised $3.1 million in a seed round led by Jungle Ventures and India Quotient. This was followed by a Series A round in September 2025, raising $7.7 million, co-led by Jungle Ventures and UAE's CE-Ventures, bringing the total funding to $10.8 million. The capital is being used to expand its R&D capabilities, enhance its global procurement and technical sales teams, and establish a presence in international markets, including the US, the Middle East, Africa, and North America. The company aims to reach $25-30 million in revenue and achieve breakeven within the next year.

Keywords: specialty chemicals, R&D, chemical manufacturing, custom formulation, chemical supply chain, asset-light manufacturing, Jungle Ventures, India Quotient, B2B chemical platform, coatings, adhesives, aroma chemicals, pharmaceutical ingredients, personal care ingredients, food ingredients, contract manufacturing, chemical procurement, process development, custom synthesis, international chemical supply