About Ben Franklin
Ben Franklin is a Retail company based in Hyderabad (India) founded in 2008 by Santosh Rapeti. Chain of optical retail stores. Ben Franklin has raised $11.02 million across 9 funding rounds from investors including Ventureast, Asian Healthcare Fund and Atulya Verma. The company has 2,084 employees. Ben Franklin was last valued at $47.4 million in September 2018. Its Indian entity Eyegear Optics India Private Limited reported revenue of ₹292 Cr. Ben Franklin offers products and services including Eyewear and Optical Dispensing Services. Its focus areas include Consumer Goods, Retail Chains, Fashion and Eyewear.
Company details
Ben Franklin was established in 2008 in Hyderabad, India, as a chain of optical retail stores. Operations focus on the eyewear sector, where a variety of spectacle frames, sunglasses, and contact lenses are provided to meet diverse customer needs. The business serves the local market with physical retail locations, emphasizing standard optical products without additional services noted.
- Headquarters Hyderabad, India
- Employees 2,084
- Founders Santosh Rapeti
- Stage Minicorn
- SectorsRetail
- Email••••••••
- Phone•••• ••••
- Website benfranklin.in
- Social X
- Legal Name Eyegear Optics India Private Limited
- Date of Incorporation 04 Aug, 2008
- Jurisdiction Hyderabad, Telangana, India
- Annual Revenue₹292 Cr
FY 2025 · +2% YoY
- Net Loss-₹10.75 Cr
FY 2025 · -4% margin
- EBITDA₹9.46 Cr
FY 2025 · 3% margin
- Total Equity Funding$11.02M (USD)
in 9 rounds
- Latest Funding Round$2.07M (USD), Series A
Sep 2018
- InvestorsVentureast
& 45 more
- Employee Count2,084
Associated legal entities of Ben Franklin
Ben Franklin operates through Eyegear Optics India Private Limited (active). Its filings, financials, charges and directors are on the company page.
| Legal entity | Status | Incorporated | Registered in | Revenue (FY 2025) | Employees | Directors | Company page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eyegear Optics India Private Limited CIN U74900TG2008PTC060452 | Active | 04 Aug 2008 | Hyderabad, Telangana | ₹292 Cr | 1,972 | 4 | View details |
Products & Services of Ben Franklin
Ben Franklin offers a comprehensive portfolio of products and services, including Eyewear and Optical Dispensing Services.
Eyewear is provided for various patient requirements, including frames for men, women, and kids, sourced from global brands.
Optical dispensing services are offered in collaboration with eye hospitals and clinics to meet diverse patient needs.
Funding Insights of Ben Franklin
Ben Franklin has successfully raised a total of $11.02M across 9 strategic funding rounds. The most recent funding activity was a Series A round of $2.07 million completed in September 2018. This substantial capital infusion reflects strong investor confidence in the company's business model, growth potential, and market opportunities. The funding enables strategic expansion, product development, market penetration, and operational scaling to drive long-term value creation and competitive advantage.
- Total Funding $11.02M
- Total Rounds 9
- Last Round Series A — $2.07M
- First Round $218,449
(Oct 2008)
- Investors Count 46
All 9 funding rounds of Ben Franklin with amounts and investors; the two latest post-money valuations are shown, the rest are part of the premium plan.
| Date | Amount | Transaction Name | Valuation | Lead Investors | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2018 | $2.07M | Series A | $47.4M | Asian Healthcare Fund | – |
| Feb 2015 | $5.97M | Series A | $18.63M | Asian Healthcare Fund | |
| Oct 2012 | $94,697 | Angel Round | $••••• | Atulya Verma | |
| Mar 2012 | $191,243 | Angel Round | $••••• | Janakiram Cherala, Prasanna Cherala | – |
| Feb 2012 | $1.45M | Angel Round | $••••• | Pratima Koppolu | |
| Sep 2011 | $475,068 | Angel Round | $••••• | Atulya Verma, Garuda Chandrasekhar | |
| Apr 2010 | $128,408 | Angel Round | $••••• | Guduru Koteswara Rao, Ravela Ramesh | |
| Aug 2009 | $416,058 | Angel Round | $••••• | Rajani Kishore Panja | |
| Oct 2008 | $218,449 | Angel Round | $••••• | Alishetti Eshwaraiah, Boppudi Ravi Kumar | – |
| Date | Valuation | Stage |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2018 | $47.4M | •••••••• |
| Feb 2015 | $18.63M | •••••••• |
| Oct 2012 | $••••• | •••••••• |
| Mar 2012 | $••••• | •••••••• |
| Feb 2012 | $••••• | •••••••• |
| Sep 2011 | $••••• | •••••••• |
| Apr 2010 | $••••• | •••••••• |
| Aug 2009 | $••••• | •••••••• |
Full valuation and stage history of Ben Franklin
Every valuation point, the growth-stage changes (minicorn, soonicorn, unicorn) and the dates behind them require an active premium plan.
- All valuation points
- Stage changes
- Dates
- Exports
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Last known valuation $47.4M (Sep 2018). 46 investors in total: 2 institutional and 44 angel.
Investors in Ben Franklin
Ben Franklin has secured backing from 46 investors, including venture fund and angel investors. Prominent investors backing the company include Ventureast, Asian Healthcare Fund and Atulya Verma.
| Investor | Description | Founded Year | Domain | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
PE firm invests in India | 2010 | asianhealthcarefund.com | Delhi, India | |
Venture capital investments in technology, healthcare, and clean environment sectors since 1997. | 1997 | ventureast.net | Bengaluru, India | |
AV Atulya Verma | unknown_dfa5483609e249b78 | |||
RR Ravindra Raju Mantena | unknown_62ff3a6bf6b8460ea | |||
JC Janakiram Cherala | unknown_a7b44b2ce5a542fca | |||
PC Prasanna Cherala | unknown_e21e90e13feb49288 | |||
SK Sridhar Kotagiri | unknown_0539b8762d694c038 | |||
JG Joganpally Geetika | unknown_51b99add196844318 | |||
GR GVN Ranga Raju | unknown_945b9fe20d9a41ea9 | |||
PD Parvathi Devi Ragu | unknown_995ef4b8b67f41668 |
Investor details for Ben Franklin
The complete investor list, round-by-round participation and investor portfolios require an active premium plan.
- Complete investor list
- Round participation
- Investor portfolios
- Co-investor network
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Board of directors of Eyegear Optics India Private Limited (Ben Franklin)
Eyegear Optics India Private Limited is the primary company behind Ben Franklin. The board of Eyegear Optics India Private Limited currently have 4 directors; the longest-serving is Santhosh Kumar Rapeti, appointed in 2008. 11 earlier directors have ceased.
| Director | Designation | Appointed | Tenure | Entity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santhosh Kumar Rapeti DIN 02166648 | Whole-time director | 04 Aug 2008 | 18 yrs 3 mo | Eyegear Optics India Private Limited |
| Rajasekhar Pyla DIN 05113019 | Managing Director | 04 Nov 2011 | 15 yrs | Eyegear Optics India Private Limited |
| Sameer Wagle Anil DIN 02341432 | Nominee Director | 24 Mar 2015 | 11 yrs 7 mo | Eyegear Optics India Private Limited |
| Sai Sanjeev Yamsani DIN 09482173 | Nominee Director | 17 Jun 2022 | 4 yrs 4 mo | Eyegear Optics India Private Limited |
People of Ben Franklin
14 people are tracked at Ben Franklin (3 in leadership, 11 in team); the tracked headcount is 2,084.
| Name | Role | Group |
|---|---|---|
Santosh Rapeti | Founder | Leadership |
Raj Pyla | Managing Director | Leadership |
Kesava Babu | Head Of Project Department | Leadership |
Tanveer Alam | Retail | Team |
Rajesh Sudheeran | Regional Manager | Team |
Virendra Sharma | Area Manager | Team |
Dandothi Mallikarjun | Area Manager | Team |
Vikas Mishra | Area Manager | Team |
Junedh Dayatar | Area Business Manager | Team |
Nitin Panchal | Area Operations Manager | Team |
Ravi Kumar | Area Manager | Team |
Mahesh Naidu | Area Manager | Team |
Hemant Agnihotri | Area Manager | Team |
Pinku Mandal | Assistant Regional Manager | Team |
Complete people profiles for Ben Franklin
Full employee and board profiles, team structure, tenure and professional contact details require an active premium plan.
- Full employee list
- Team structure
- Board tenure
- Professional contacts
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Financials of Ben Franklin
Figures of Eyegear Optics India Private Limited, the primary company behind Ben Franklin, for FY 2025. Revenue was ₹292 Cr (+2% year on year). Net loss was -₹10.75 Cr (-4% margin). EBITDA was ₹9.46 Cr (3% margin). Revenue has grown at a compounded annual rate of +13% over three years and +10% over five years.
- ₹292 CrRevenue · FY 2025 · +2% YoY
- -₹10.75 CrNet loss · -4% margin
- ₹9.46 CrEBITDA · 3% margin
- ₹51.3 LakhPaid-up capital
- 1,972Employees (provident fund records)
- +13%Revenue CAGR, 3 years
- +10%Revenue CAGR, 5 years
Balance sheet, profit and loss, cash flow and ratios of Eyegear Optics India Private Limited are on its company page.
Detailed financial statements for Ben Franklin
Statement rows, ratios, five-year trends and downloadable financials of the group companies require an active premium plan.
- Statement rows
- Financial ratios
- Five-year trends
- Downloads
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Timeline of Ben Franklin
4 dated milestones of Ben Franklin across 10 years, from founding to its latest funding, stage changes and deals.
- Founded Ben Franklin is founded.
- Funding First funding round of $218K.
- Milestone Reaches Minicorn status.
- Funding Latest funding round, Series A, of $2.1M.
Web traffic of Ben Franklin
The website of Ben Franklin (benfranklin.in) receives about 8.7K visits a month.
- Monthly visits8.7K
▼ 42.2% vs previous month
Websites whose visitors overlap most with Ben Franklin. Affinity shows how closely the audiences match.
| Website | Domain | Audience affinity | Monthly visits | Global rank | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
en.wikipedia.org | en.wikipedia.org | 100% | – | ||
| titaneyeplus.com | 96% | 1.3M | #30,473 | View details | |
lensandframes.com | lensandframes.com | 94% | #2,514,997 | – | |
| benfranklinonline.com | 69% | #854,095 | View details | ||
| vijayopticians.com | 68% | #1,908,689 | View details | ||
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
All 7 similar websites and full traffic analytics for Ben Franklin
The complete similar-websites list, audience overlap and engagement analytics require an active premium plan.
- 7 similar websites
- Audience overlap
- Engagement analytics
- Traffic by brand
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Top companies in Retail Stores & Chains
2 companies that operate in the same segment as Ben Franklin (Retail Stores & Chains) in India, ranked by their profile score on The Company Check.
| Company | Description | Founded | Location | Total funding | Revenue | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Online platform offering a wide range of baby, kids, and maternity products | 2010 | Pune, Maharashtra, India | USD 513.39 M | USD 911.07 M | 3,752 | |
Multi-format offline retail is operated in India. | 1997 | Mumbai, Maharashtra, India | USD 3.41 B | USD 280.87 K | 32 |
Unlock complete access to The Company Check
Get unrestricted viewing across everything we track — from companies and brands to investors, funding rounds, acquisitions, financials, and more.
- Unlimited viewing on all profiles Companies, investors, financials, funding, acquisitions & directors
- Full access to every database India & global coverage, advanced filters and rich profile details
- Always-on access from your team account Single premium plan for everything you see on the portal
Related news about Ben Franklin
Complete news archive for Ben Franklin
Full article history, source details, and older brand coverage require an active premium plan.
- Full article archive
- Source and publication date
- Older coverage
- Brand-specific news history
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Frequently Asked Questions about Ben Franklin
Ben Franklin was founded in 2008.
Ben Franklin is headquartered in Hyderabad, India. It is registered at Hyderabad, Telangana, India.
Ben Franklin is a funded company, having raised a total of $11.02M across 9 funding rounds to date. The company's 1st funding round was a Angel Round of $218.45K, raised on Oct 2008.
Ben Franklin has 2,084 employees.
The primary company behind Ben Franklin, Eyegear Optics India Private Limited, reported revenue of ₹292 Cr for FY 2025, up 2% year on year.
Ben Franklin was established in 2008 in Hyderabad, India, as a chain of optical retail stores. Operations focus on the eyewear sector, where a variety of spectacle frames, sunglasses, and contact lenses are provided to meet diverse customer needs. The business serves the local market with physical retail locations, emphasizing standard optical products without additional services noted.
Ben Franklin offers Eyewear and Optical Dispensing Services.
Ben Franklin has 46 investors. Key investors include Ventureast, Asian Healthcare Fund, Atulya Verma, Ravindra Raju Mantena, and Janakiram Cherala.
The valuation of Ben Franklin is $47.4M as of Sep 2018.
Ben Franklin operates through Eyegear Optics India Private Limited.
The legal entities of Ben Franklin currently have 4 directors, including Santhosh Kumar Rapeti, Rajasekhar Pyla, Sai Sanjeev Yamsani and others.