The world’s third largest startup ecosystem has been in the midst of a raging funding winter for a couple of years now. As investors tightened their purse strings, the Indian startup ecosystem has had to go through a lot of pain, which included thousands of employees losing their jobs. 

This was especially true for the fiscal year 2023-24 (FY24), when the funding drought peaked. Far from the capital boom of 2021, when fear of missing out (FOMO) among investors drove a valuation bubble, FY23 and FY24 turned out to be a reality check for the startup ecosystem as many shut shop while others took the debt route to extend their runways. 

However, not everything was doom and gloom. The struggle of the funding winter brought with it sanity in valuations and forced startups to cut their expenses to chart a profitable growth. This trend was evident in the financial statements of Indian startups in FY23 and seems to have continued in FY24 as well.

Of the 53 startups that have released their financial statements for FY24 so far, 31 ended the year with profitable numbers. Their cumulative profit stood at INR 4,159.4 Cr. 

The likes of Zomato, PB Fintech, Honasa and Milk Mantra turned profitable during the year under review.

Meanwhile, the remaining 22 startups posted a cumulative loss of INR 10,125.1 Cr, with just Paytm and Ola Electric accounting for more than INR 3,000 Cr of this loss figure. However, it needs to be highlighted that many of these startups were also able to cut their losses in FY24.

In terms of top line, the 53 startups posted a cumulative operating revenue of over INR 1 Lakh Cr (INR 1,30,288.77 Cr to be precise) in the year ended March 2024. 

So, without further ado, let’s take a look at the financial performance of some of these startups in FY24. 

Editor’s Note: This list is not a ranking of any kind, we have placed the companies alphabetically. This is a running list and will be updated periodically.

Inside The FY24 Financials Of Indian Startups

Note: All amount in INR Cr

[SC/]

*refers to net earned premium (GWP)

Avanse’s Profit Crosses INR 300 Cr Mark

IPO-bound non-banking financial company Avanse Financial Services posted a profit of INR 342.4 Cr in FY24, a jump of 117% from INR 157.7 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Operating revenue also jumped 74.5% to INR 1,727 Cr in FY24 from INR 989.6 Cr in the previous year. 

Its IPO will comprise a fresh issue of shares worth INR 1,000 Cr and an offer for sale (OFS) component of shares worth up to INR 2,500 Cr. It plans to use the IPO proceeds to increase its capital base to fuel further expansion of its business.

Read More: IPO-Bound Avanse’s PAT Doubles To INR 342.4 Cr In FY24, Operating Revenue Surges 74%

Ather Energy’s Loss Crosses INR 1,000 Cr Mark

IPO-bound Ather Energy’s operating revenue declined 1.5% to INR 1,753.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,780.9 Cr in the previous fiscal year. On the other hand, its net loss widened over 22% to INR 1,059.7 Cr from INR 864.5 Cr in FY23.

Total expenses in FY24 stood at INR 2,674.2 Cr, rising marginally from INR 2,666.3 Cr in the previous year.

Read More: Ather Energy FY24: Revenue Declines On Reduction In FAME-II Subsidy, Loss Up 22% To INR 1,060 Cr

Awfis’ Loss Narrows 

Coworking space startup Awfis managed to reduce its loss to INR 17.75 Cr in FY24, a 62% decline from INR 46.6 Cr in the previous year. Though the startup was in loss for the entire fiscal year, it turned profitable in Q4 FY24. It posted a profit of INR 1.4 Cr in Q4 FY24. 

In terms of revenue, Awfis’ operating revenue jumped 55.6% to INR 848.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 545.2 Cr in the previous year. In Q4 FY24, the startup’s operating revenue jumped over 45% YoY to INR 232.4 Cr. 

Awfis went public in May this year. Its IPO comprised a fresh issue of shares worth INR 128 Cr and an OFS component of up to 1.23 Cr shares. Peak XV Partners and Bisque Limited were among the investors who sold shares via the OFS. 

Read More: Awfis Turns Profitable In Q4 With INR 1.4 Cr PAT, Operating Revenue Jumps 45% YoY

BlackBuck’s Loss Falls Below INR 200 Cr Mark

IPO-bound BlackBuck managed to lower its loss by over 30% in the financial year ended March 31, 2024. The logistics startup incurred a net loss of INR 194 Cr, a decline of 33% from INR 290.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

The Flipkart-backed startup’s operating revenue zoomed 69% to INR 296.9 Cr in FY24 from INR 175.6 Cr in FY23. It primarily earns revenue by offering payments services, telematics, load marketplace, and vehicle financing services on its platform. 

The logistics unicorn’s IPO will comprise a fresh issue of shares worth INR 550 Cr and an OFS component of up to 2.16 Cr shares (2,16,09,022 to be precise). 

Read More: IPO-Bound BlackBuck Narrows Loss By 33% To INR 194 Cr In FY24

BlueStone’s Loss Narrows By 15% To INR 142 Cr

Omnichannel jewellery brand BlueStone managed to narrow its loss by almost 15% year-on-year (YoY) to INR 142.2 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 167.2 Cr in the previous year. 

Its operating revenue surpassed the INR 1,000 Cr mark during the year under review. Revenue from operations surged over 64% to INR 1,265.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 770.7 Cr in the previous year. 

Total expenditure rose 51.4% to INR 1,445.7 Cr from INR 955.1 Cr in FY23.

Read More: BlueStone FY24: Revenue Surpasses INR 1,000 Cr Mark, Loss Narrows 15% To INR 142.2 Cr

CaratLane’s Revenue Breaches INR 3,000 Cr Mark

The Tata-owned omnichannel jewellery startup reported a 42% jump in its operating revenue to INR 3,080 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,169 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

However, net profit declined nearly 5% to INR 78.59 Cr during the under review from INR 82.08 Cr in FY23 due to rise in advertising and “miscellaneous” expenses. 

CaratLane FY24: Profit Declines 5% To INR 79 Cr, Revenue Crosses INR 3,000 Cr Mark

CarTrade’s Profit Halves 

Used car marketplace startup CarTrade saw its profit fall 50% to INR 20 Cr in FY24 from INR 40 Cr in the previous fiscal year. The decline in the loss could be attributed to the startup’s acquisition of Sobek Auto India, comprising OLX Autos C2B business and OLX classifieds business, for INR 535.54 Cr.

CarTrade reported an operating revenue of INR 489.9 Cr in FY24 as against INR 363.7 Cr in the previous year.  

Read More: CarTrade Back In The Black With INR 25 Cr PAT In Q4; Revenue Jumps 38% YoY

Delhivery’s Loss Narrows By 75% 

Delhi NCR-based Delhivery posted a 75% decrease in its loss in FY24. The logistics unicorn reported a loss of INR 249 Cr during the year as against INR 1,007 Cr in FY23. 

Operating revenue stood at INR 8,141 Cr in FY24, an increase of 12.6% from INR 7,225 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

The startup also reduced its advertising expenses to INR 16 Cr from INR 22 Cr in FY24. 

Read More: After A Profitable Q3, Delhivery Posts INR 69 Cr Loss In Q4 FY24

DevX Turns Profitable In FY24

IPO-bound coworking space provider DevX posted a net profit of INR 43.7 Lakh in FY24 as against a net loss of INR 12.83 Cr in the previous fiscal. 

The startup’s operating revenue zoomed 55% to INR 108.08 Cr during the year under review from INR 69.91 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

The coworking space provider’s total expenses rose 37% to INR 119.50 Cr in FY24 from INR 87.49 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: IPO-Bound DevX Posts INR 44 Lakh Profit In FY24

DroneAcharya’s Profit Doubles

Pune-based drone startup DroneAcharya Aerial Innovations reported a consolidated profit after tax (PAT) of INR 6.2 Cr in FY24, almost double of INR 3.42 Cr profit it posted in the previous fiscal year.

DroneAcharya’s operating revenue increased nearly 90% to INR 35.19 Cr in FY24 from INR 18.56 Cr in FY23. The startup attributed this increase to the company’s steady and consistent growth as a drone solution provider and a drone training organisation.

Read More: DroneAcharya’s Net Profit Doubles To INR 6.2 Cr In FY24, Operating Revenue Jumps 90%

EaseMyTrip’s Revenue Inches Closer To INR 600 Cr Mark

Online ticketing platform EaseMyTrip saw its revenue rise 32% to INR 591 Cr from INR 488.8 Cr in FY23, driven by an increase in sales of air tickets. 

Despite the increase in revenue, the startup’s profit took a hit. EaseMyTrip’s profit fell 23% to INR 103.4 Cr in FY24 from INR 134 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Increase in advertising expenses was among the reasons for the decrease in profit.

Read More: EaseMyTrip Q4: Incurs Loss Of INR 15 Cr Due To One-Time Expenses

Ecom Express Sees Its Loss Decline 67%

IPO-bound logistics startup Ecom Express managed to reduce its net loss by 67% to INR 255.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 428.1 Cr in FY23.

The startup’s operating revenue saw a marginal 2.15% increase to INR 2,609 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,553.9 Cr in the previous fiscal year, as per its DRHP. Total expenses rose marginally by 0.64% to INR 2,921.5 Cr in  FY24, from INR 2,902.8 Cr.

Read More: Ecom Express FY24: IPO-Bound Startup’s Loss Narrows 67% To INR 255.8 Cr

Fasal’s Revenue Surges Nearly 90%

Agritech startup Fasal’s revenue from operations grew 89% to INR 34.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 18 Cr in FY23. Including other income, Fasal’s total revenue grew nearly 90% to INR 35.5 Cr in FY24 from INR 18.8 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Meanwhile, total expenses rose 34% to INR 69.5 Cr during the year under review from INR 51.6 Cr in FY23. 

Loss increased 6% to INR 34 Cr from INR 32 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Agritech Startup Fasal’s FY24 Revenue Jumps 89% to INR 34.1 Cr

Fino Payments Bank’s Profit Jumps Over 30%

Mumbai-based Fino Payments Bank’s operating revenue jumped 20% to INR 1,478.3 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,229.9 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Its expenses also grew almost in line with revenue. Total expenses stood at INR 1,391.5 Cr in FY24, up 19% from INR 1,164.8Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Fino’s net profit zoomed 32% to INR 86.2 Cr from INR 65 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Fino Payments Bank Q4: Net Profit Rises 14% YoY To INR 25.21 Cr

FirstCry’s Loss Declines Over 30% 

Ahead of its IPO, kids-focussed omnichannel retailer FirstCry managed to reduce its net loss by 34% to INR 321.5 Cr in FY24 from INR 486 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Its operating revenue increased 15% to INR 6,480.8 Cr during the year under review from INR 5,632.5 Cr in FY23. Expenses rose 9.2% to INR 6,896.6 Cr from INR 6,315.7 Cr in FY23. 

FirstCry made its public market debut in August. Its shares listed at INR 651 on the NSE, a premium of 40% over its issue price of INR 549.

Read More: FirstCry FY24: Loss Narrows 34%, Revenue Crosses INR 6K Cr Mark Ahead Of IPO

Go Digit’s Profit Zooms 5X

Insurtech startup Go Digit posted strong results with a 400% jump in its profit after tax (PAT) to INR 182 Cr in FY24 from INR 36 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

With the sharp growth in health, travel, and personal accident premiums, Go Digit’s total gross written premium (GWP) increased 24.5% to INR 9,016 Cr from INR 7,243 Cr in FY23.

Net earned premium rose over 37% to INR 7,096 Cr in FY24 from INR 5,164 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Go Digit FY24: PAT Jumps Over 5X To INR 182 Cr, GWP At INR 9,016 Cr

Mamaearth Turns Profitable In FY24

Honasa Consumer Ltd, the parent entity of D2C unicorn Mamaearth, returned to the black during the year under review. After posting a net loss of INR 150.9 Cr in FY23, the startup minted a profit of INR 110.5 Cr in FY24. 

Operating revenue rose 28.6% to INR 1,919.9 Cr from INR 1,492.7 Cr in FY23. Total expenditure jumped 21.3% to INR 1,822.4 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,501.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: Honasa FY24: Mamaearth Parent Turns Profitable For Full Fiscal Year

ideaForge’s Profit Nears INR 50 Cr Mark 

ideaForge reported its third consecutive profitable fiscal as the drone maker clocked a net profit of INR 47.8 Cr in the fiscal ended March 2024. This was an increase of almost 50% from INR 31.9 Cr. Its profit stood at INR 44 Cr in FY22. 

Operating revenue also soared more than 70% year-on-year (YoY) to INR 186 Cr during the year under review.

Meanwhile, expenses zoomed 81% to INR 282.9 Cr in FY24 from INR 155.6 Cr in the previous year. 

Read More: ideaForge PAT Slips 30% QoQ To INR 10.3 Cr In Q4

InCred’s Profit Surges 2.6X 

The fintech startup’s operating revenue crossed the INR 1,000 Cr mark during the year under review. InCred saw its top line grow nearly 47% to INR 1,270 Cr in FY24 from INR 864.6 Cr in FY23.

Meanwhile, profit soared 162% to INR 316.3 Cr from INR 120.9 Cr in FY23. Rising finance costs and employee benefit expenses pushed up InCred’s total expenses by over 37% YoY to INR 871.3 Cr during the fiscal year under review. 

Read More: InCred FY24: Profit More Than Doubles To INR 316.3 Cr, Revenue Crosses INR 1,000 Cr Mark

IndiaMART’s Revenue Crosses INR 1,000 Cr Mark

The B2B ecommerce major posted a 17% rise in its net profit to INR 334 Cr in FY24 from INR 283 Cr in the year-ago period. 

Operating revenue jumped 21% to INR 1,196 Cr in the fiscal ended March 2024 from INR 985 Cr in FY23. On similar lines, total expenses also rose 20% to INR 910.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 756.7 Cr in the previous fiscal year. This increase in expenditure was largely attributable to a sharp jump in employee benefit costs, which rose 27% YoY to INR 507 Cr during the year under review. 

Read More: IndiaMART Q4: Profit Surges 78% YoY To INR 99.6 Cr

ixigo’s Profit Triples 

Online travel aggregator ixigo had a bumper year as its net profit more than tripled to INR 73.1 Cr from INR 23.4 Cr in FY23. 

The travel tech major’s operating revenue increased almost 31% to INR 655.9 Cr in the reported fiscal year from INR 501.2 Cr in FY23. This came largely on the back of broad-based growth across its business verticals and healthy uptick in annual active users. 

Total expenditure jumped almost 30% YoY to INR 627.8 Cr in FY24.

Le Travenues Technology, the parent company of the travel tech startup, made a stellar debut on the stock exchanges in June 2024 and listed at INR 138.10 per share on the BSE, a 48.5% premium from the issue price of INR 93. 

Read More: ixigo FY24: Profit Jumps Over 200% To INR 73.1 Cr, Train Bookings Biggest Revenue Source

Josh Talks Trims Loss By 25%

Delhi NCR-based media and entertainment startup Josh Talks pruned its loss by 25% in FY24 to INR 9.88 Cr from INR 13.21 Cr loss it incurred in the previous fiscal year.

Revenue from operations rose 2% to INR 18.71 Cr from INR 18.29 Cr in FY23. Including other income of INR 65.40 Lakh, the startup’s total revenue for the fiscal stood at INR 19.37 Cr. This number was 3% higher than the INR 18.80 Cr total revenue for FY23. 

The startup also managed to lower its total expenditure by 9% to INR 29.2 Cr in FY24 from INR 32 Cr. 

Read More: Josh Talks FY24: Losses Come Down 25% To INR 9.8 Cr, Revenue Up 2%

MapmyIndia’s Profit Jumps 25% 

Geotech company MapmyIndia reported a profit of INR 134.4 Cr in FY24, up 25% from INR 107.5 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Operating revenue rose more than 34% to INR 379 in the year ended March 2024 from INR 281 Cr in FY23. Meanwhile, total expenditure increased 36% YoY to INR 240.9 Cr on the back of a sharp rise in other expenses, which rose 73%.

Read More: MapmyIndia’s Q4 PAT Jumps 35% YoY To INR 38 Cr

Milk Mantra Back In The Black

Bhubaneswar-based dairy tech startup Milk Mantra turned profitable in FY24, posting a net profit of INR 9.8 Cr as against a net loss of INR 12.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year. It is pertinent to note that the startup slipped into the red for the first time in FY23 after eight straight years of profitability. 

Operating revenue stood at INR 276.4 Cr in FY24, a marginal increase of 1.3% from INR 272.9 Cr in FY23.

 In terms of expenditure, the startup’s total cost fell a little over 7% to INR 269.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 289.5 Cr in the previous year. 

Read More: Milk Mantra Back In The Black With INR 9.8 Cr Profit In FY24, But Growth Remains Muted

Minimalist’s Profit Jumps 2X In FY24

D2C skincare brand Minimalist’s net profit more than doubled to INR 10.9 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 5.2 Cr in FY23, on the back of a strong growth in its top line.

The Rajasthan-based startup’s revenue from operations surged 89% to INR 347.4 Cr during the year under review from INR 183.8 Cr in FY23.

Expenditure rose largely in line with the growth in its sales. Total expenses jumped 84% to INR 331.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 180.2 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: D2C Brand Minimalist’s FY24 Profit Doubles To INR 10.9 Cr, Revenue Up 1.9X YoY

Navi Finserv’s Operating Revenue Takes Hit 

Navi Finserv’s consolidated operating revenue fell 6.6% to INR 1,906.2 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,040.6 Cr in FY23. The startup’s profit from continued operations also slipped 41% year-on-year (YoY) to INR 155.6 Cr in FY24. 

It is pertinent to mention that Navi Finserv divested its entire holding in microfinance subsidiary Chaitanya India Fin Credit Private Ltd during the year under review. Including profit from discontinued operations, its net profit more than doubled to INR 545.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 264.2 Cr.

Total expenses saw a marginal increase to INR 1,750.4 Cr in the reported year from INR 1,743.9 Cr in FY23, with finance cost alone comprising over 37% of its total spending.

Read More: Navi Finserv FY24: Revenue Falls 6.6% To INR 1,906 Cr, Profit Down 41% YoY

Nazara’s Profit Increases By Over 20% 

Gaming major Nazara Technologies reported an operating revenue of INR 1,138.2 Cr during the year under review. This was an increase of 4.3% from INR 1,091 Cr in FY23. 

Profit jumped 21.7% to INR 74.7 Cr from INR 61.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Nazara’s total expenses stood at INR 1,112.4 Cr in FY24, an increase of 5.7% from INR 1,051.7 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Read More: Nazara Q4: Profit Shrinks To INR 18 Lakh, Operating Revenue Declines To INR 266.2 Cr

Nykaa Nearly Doubles Its Profit 

Fashion ecommerce startup Nykaa reported an operating revenue of INR 6,358.6 Cr in FY24, 23.6% higher than INR 5,143.8 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Its profit increased 89.5% to INR 40 Cr in FY24 from INR 21.1 Cr in FY23. 

The Falguni Nayar-led unicorn’s total expenditure grew 23.5% to INR 6,346.5 Cr in FY24 from INR 5,135.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Read More: Nykaa FY24: Despite Q4 Slide, Profit Rises By 80% For Full Fiscal Year

OfBusiness’ Revenue Crosses INR 19,000 Cr Mark

B2B marketplace OfBusiness’ consolidated operating revenue surged over 25% to INR 19,296.3 Cr FY24 from INR 15,342.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Net profit increased by over 30% to INR 602 Cr from INR 463 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Total expenses jumped 24.3% to INR 18,695.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 15,037.5 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: OfBusiness FY24: Profit Surges Over 30% To Cross INR 600 Cr Mark

Ola Electric Breaches INR 5,000 Cr Revenue Mark

Recently listed two-wheeler EV startup Ola Electric reported a 90% jump in its revenue to INR 5,010 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,630 Cr in the previous year, on the back of increase in sales of its EV scooters. 

The Bhavish Aggarwal-led startup also managed to cap the increase in loss ahead of its IPO. Its net loss rose 7% to INR 1,584.4 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,472 Cr in the previous year. Employee benefit expenses increased to INR 439 Cr from INR 427 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: IPO-Bound Ola Electric’s FY24 Net Loss Widens To INR 1,584 Cr, Revenue Jumps 90%

OPEN’s Revenue Slumps To INR 25 Cr

Neobanking startup OPEN’s operating revenue declined 17% to INR 24.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 29.9 Cr in FY23.

Including other income, the startup’s total revenue declined 13% to INR 46.1 Cr from INR 53.1 Cr in FY23. 

With the decline in revenue, the Temasek-backed startup’s net loss also reduced 30% to INR 170 Cr during the year under review from INR 242.2 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Total expenditure fell 34% to INR 194.6 Cr in FY24 from INR 296.5 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: OPEN Spent INR 195 Cr To Earn INR 25 Cr Revenue In FY24

Oxyzo’s Profit Rises To Almost INR 300 Cr

Fintech unicorn Oxyzo, led by couple Ruchi Kalra and Asish Mohapatra, reported a 47% rise in profit to INR 290 Cr in FY24 from INR 198 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Operating revenue zoomed 58% to INR 903.3 Cr from INR 569.9 Cr in FY23. Oxyzo primarily earns revenue from the interest it earns by offering loans to small and medium enterprises.

Read More: Fintech Unicorn Oxyzo’s Profit Zooms 47% To INR 290 Cr In FY24

OYO Turns Profitable With INR 229 Cr PAT As Employee Costs Halve

IPO-bound OYO posted a net profit of INR 229.5 Cr during the year as against a net loss of INR 1,286.5 Cr in the previous financial year. 

However, its operating revenue remained almost flat during the year under review. Revenue from operations stood at INR 5,388.7 Cr in FY24, a decline of 1.3% from INR 5,463.9 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

The startup managed to reduce its total expenditure by 16% to INR 5,725.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 6,799.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Read More: OYO Turns Profitable With INR 229 Cr PAT In FY24 As Employee Costs Halve

Paytm’s Revenue Nears INR 10K Cr Mark

Troubled fintech giant Paytm posted a revenue of INR 9,977.8 Cr in FY24, an increase of 24.8% from INR 7,990.3 Cr in the previous year. It also managed to narrow its loss by 19.3% to INR 1,422.4 Cr from INR 1,775.6 Cr in FY23. 

However, it needs to be mentioned that the Vijay Shekhar Sharma-led company’s revenue is likely to take a hit in FY25 due to the RBI’s crackdown on Paytm Payments Bank. 

Read More: Paytm Q4: Net loss Widens To INR 550 Cr

PB Fintech Operating Revenue Crosses INR 3,000 Cr Mark

PB Fintech, the parent company of insurance tech platform PolicyBazaar, saw its revenue cross the INR 3,000 Cr mark in FY24. Its operating revenue rose 34.4% to INR 3,437.6 Cr during the year under review from INR 2,557.8 Cr in FY23. 

The company also turned profitable, posting a profit of INR 64.61 Cr during the year under review compared to a loss of INR 487.9 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: PB Fintech Stock Goes Through Market Swings After Reporting Profitable Q4 FY24

Porter’s Loss Declines 45% To INR 96 Cr 

The Peak XV Partners-backed startup’s loss declined 45% to INR 95.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 174.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Operating revenue zoomed 56% to INR 2,733.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,737.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

The startup’s total expenditure rose 46% to INR 2,862.1 Cr during the year under review from INR 1,964 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Read More: Porter FY24: Loss Declines 45% To INR 96 Cr, Revenue Crosses INR 2,500 Cr Mark

Purplle’s FY24 Sales Zoom 43% To INR 680 Cr 

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA)-backed unicorn reported an operating revenue of INR 679.6 Cr in FY24, an increase of 43% from INR 475 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Purplle’s total expenditure rose only 15% year-on-year. Its expenses stood at INR 849.6 Cr in FY24 as against INR 738.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Purplle managed to reduce its cash burn during the year under review, as a result of which its net loss plummeted 46% to INR 124.1 Cr from INR 230 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Purplle’s FY24 Sales Zoom 43% To INR 680 Cr, Loss Almost Halves

RateGain’s Profit More Than Doubles 

Traveltech company RateGain’s consolidated profit after tax jumped 114% to INR 146.3 Cr in FY24 from INR 68.4 Cr in FY23. Its operating revenue zoomed 69% to INR 957 Cr during the year under review from INR 565 Cr in FY23

Employee benefit expenses increased to INR 380 Cr from INR 252.7 Cr in FY23, indicating an increase in employee count. 

Read More: RateGain FY24 Results: Profits More Than Double To INR 146 Cr

Rebel Foods’ Loss Narrows By 42%

Cloud kitchen unicorn Rebel Foods narrowed its net loss by 42% to INR 378.2 Cr in FY24 from INR 656.5 Cr in the previous fiscal year. The Faasos-parent trimmed its loss on the back of an increase in its top line and controlled expenses.

Rebel Foods’ operating revenue jumped 19% to INR 1,420.2 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,195.2 Cr in FY23. Total expenses increased marginally by 1.6% to INR 1,857 Cr from INR 1827 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: Rebel Foods FY24: Net Loss Nearly Halves To INR 378 Cr, Revenue Up 19% YoY

IPO-Bound Smartworks’ Loss Falls 51% 

IPO-bound coworking space provider Smartworks’ net loss narrowed 51% to INR 49.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 101.02 Cr in the previous fiscal year. The startup, which recently filed its DRHP to raise over INR 550 Cr via its IPO, saw its operating revenue jump 46% to INR 1,039.4 Cr during the year under review from INR 711.4 Cr in FY23. 

Total expenditure increased 34% to INR 1,180.7 Cr from INR 880.2 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Read More: Smartworks DRHP: FY24 Loss Declines 51% To INR 50 Cr, Revenue Crosses INR 1,000 Cr Mark

Swiggy’s FY24 Revenue Crosses INR 10K Mark

IPO-bound Swiggy managed to narrow its loss by 44% to INR 2,350 Cr in FY24 from INR 4,179.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Operating revenue stood at INR 11,247.3 Cr, up 1.3X from INR 8,264.5 Cr in FY23. 

The IPO-bound company managed to control the rise in its expenses during the year. Its total expenditure grew a mere 8% to INR 13,947.3 Cr from INR 12,884.3 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Swiggy DRHP: Revenue Crosses INR 10,000 Cr Mark In FY24, Loss Almost Halves

TAC Infosec Reports INR 6 Cr Profit

SaaS cybersecurity startup TAC Infosec reported a net profit of INR 6.33 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24), a 23% jump from INR 5.12 Cr in FY23. 

Operating revenue rose 17% to INR 11.84 Cr during the year under review from INR 10.09 Cr in FY23.

Total expenditure for the fiscal stood at INR 5.49 Cr, an increase of 10% from the INR 4.97 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: SaaS Cybersecurity Startup TAC Infosec’s FY24 Profit Rises 23% To INR 6.3 Cr

Tata 1mg Narrows Its Loss By 75% 

The Bengaluru-based startup’s net loss narrowed 75% to INR 313 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,254.8 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

The startup, which primarily earns revenue from sales of medicines, and offering lab and diagnostics test services, saw its operating revenue rise 21% to INR 1,967.7 Cr during the year under review from INR 1,627 Cr in FY23.

It managed to cut its total expenditure by 20% to INR 2,302.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,893.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: Tata 1mg FY24: Loss Declines 75% To INR 313 Cr On Business Growth, Fall In Expenses

TBO Tek Posts INR 200 Cr Profit 

B2B travel portal TBO Tek, which made a strong market debut in 2024, reported a 35% increase in its net profit to INR 200 Cr in FY24 from INR 148.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Operating revenue jumped 31% to INR 1,392.8 Cr from INR 1,064 Cr in FY23. 

Employee benefit expense rose to INR 277.3 Cr during the year under review from INR 228.3 Cr in FY23.

TBO Tek made its public market debut in May. The stock listed at INR 1,426 on the NSE, a premium of 55% to its issue price of INR 920. Similarly, the stock listed at INR 1,380 on the BSE, a premium of 50% to its issue price.

Read More: TBO Tek Q1: Profit Jumps 29% YoY To INR 61 Cr, Revenue Up 21%

Tracxn’s Profit Tanks In FY24

In what was a sombre fiscal for Tracxn, the market intelligence platform saw its net profit shrink by more than 80% to INR 6.5 Cr in FY24 from INR 33 Cr in the year-ago period. 

Tracxn’s operating revenue rose nearly 6% to INR 82.70 Cr during the year under review from INR 78.10 Cr in FY23.

Tracxn FY24 Results: Profits Shrink By 80% For Full Year

Trust Fintech’s Profit Triples 

The fintech SaaS company’s net profit zoomed 210% to INR 12.5 Cr in FY24 from INR 4 Cr in the previous fiscal year, on the back of a healthy growth in its top line.

The company, which made its public market debut in April 2024, saw its operating revenue jump 55.4% YoY to INR 35 Cr during the fiscal year ended March 2024.

Trust Fintech’s Net Profit Jumps 3X To INR 12.5 Cr In FY24

WROGN’s Operating Revenue Slumps 29%

Virat Kohli and Accel-backed youth fashion brand WROGN’s operating revenue slumped 29% to INR 243.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 344.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Including other income, total income declined 27% to INR 264.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 361.3 Cr in FY23.

Despite the decline in revenue, WROGN’s net loss rose 28% to INR 56.8 Cr during the year under review from INR 44.3 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Virat Kohli-Backed WROGN’s FY24 Revenue Falls 29% To INR 244 Cr, Loss Up 28%

IPO-Bound Zappfresh’s Profit Rises 70% 

The IPO-bound D2C meat delivery startup reported a 70% jump in its net profit to INR 4.7 Cr during the fiscal ended March 2024 from INR 2.7 Cr in FY23. 

As per its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP), Zappfresh’s operating revenue zoomed over 60% to INR 90.4 Cr in FY24 from INR 56.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Zappfresh DRHP: Revenue Surges 60% To INR 90 Cr In FY24, Profit Jumps 70%

Edited By: Vinaykumar Rai
Last Updated: 12 Oct, 6:30 PM IST

The post Indian Startup FY24 Financials Tracker: Tracking The Financial Performance Of Top Startups appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Bengaluru-based B2B marketplace startup Zetwerk has joined the growing list of Indian startups eyeing an initial public offering (IPO). The Lightspeed-backed startup has held initial discussions with investment banker JP Morgan for its IPO, sources told Inc42. 

The startup’s top management has also held discussions with 2-3 other banks, the sources said. However, they added that the talks are at a preliminary stage and nothing is finalised yet.

The unicorn, last valued at $2.8 Bn, is looking to go public in the next two years.

Zetwerk didn’t respond to Inc42’s queries on the development. JP Morgan declined to comment. 

Founded in 2018 by Amrit Acharya, Srinath Ramakkrushnan, Rahul Sharma and Vishal Chaudhary, Zetwerk connects manufacturing companies with vendors and suppliers for procuring industrial machine components. 

Earlier this year, the startup announced an investment of INR 1,000 Cr to grow its electronics manufacturing capacity across IT hardware, television, mobile phones, hearable and wearable product segments.

In a statement, the unicorn then said that it was aiming to lead the ODM (original design manufacturer) as well as electronics manufacturing services space in the mobile phones, hearable and wearable space categories.

Zetwerk entered the television and display devices business by commissioning one of north India’s largest TV manufacturing facilities with a production capacity of 2.4 Mn units annually to cater to both domestic and international brands.

The startup has raised a total funding of over $700 Mn till date and counts Mars Growth Capital, Greenoaks Capital, Peak XV Partners, among its backers. 

Zetwerk indirectly competes against the likes of Moglix, OfBusiness, among others. 

It is pertinent to note that OfBusiness is also eyeing a $1 Bn IPO in the second half of 2025.

Amid the ongoing IPO boom in the Indian market, a number of new-age tech startups are lining up to go public. While 10 startups, including Ola Electric, Awfis, Go Digit, among others, have gone public so far this year, Swiggy, Ecom Express, MobiKwik, among others, are looking to make their public market debut in the next few months.

The post Exclusive: Zetwerk Begins Talks With JP Morgan, Other Bankers For IPO appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Mohalla Tech Private Limited, the parent of social media platform ShareChat and short video app Moj, has launched a social media app ‘Vibely’ to connect with new users, sources told Inc42.

The app also has a private calling feature which allows users to call other app users. The new app, launched last week, also allows users to make in-app purchases to buy gifts, the sources added.

It is pertinent to note that ShareChat and Moj already offer the audio calling feature. However, the sources said that the idea behind launching Vibely was to have a dedicated app for audio calling feature. 

“If someone wants to just have a conversation, why should he/ she have to go through several posts and notifications on ShareChat/ Moj,” one of the sources said. 

The launch of the new app is part of the efforts of Mohalla Tech to cut down its losses by shoring up revenue. 

While ShareChat is yet to file its financial statements for FY24, the sources said that it is likely to report a revenue of INR 700 Cr as against INR 540 Cr in FY23. Meanwhile, its net loss is expected to more than halve to INR 1,800 Cr from INR 4,064 Cr in FY23.

Its adjusted EBITDA loss is expected to come down to INR 800 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,372 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Meanwhile, the sources also said that ShareChat has turned EBITDA positive as of September 2024.

The startup declined to comment on Inc42’s queries on the launch of Vibely and its financials for FY24.

The development comes almost a couple of months after ShareChat raised $16 Mn debt from Singapore-based fund EDBI, expanding the size of its previous debt round to $65 Mn. 

In April this year, Inc42 exclusively reported about ShareChat raising $49 Mn via convertible debentures in a funding round from its existing investors Lightspeed, Temasek, Alkeon Capital, Moore Strategic Ventures, HarbourVest, among others.

Founded in 2015 by Ankush Sachdeva, Bhanu Singh, and Farid Ahsan, Mohalla Tech claims to have 325 Mn monthly active users across all its platforms. Of these, ShareChat claims to have over 180 Mn monthly active users. 

In 2022, Mohalla Tech acquired another short video platform MX TakaTak from Times Internet and integrated it with Moj, which it launched in July 2020. The deal was pegged at around $600 Mn. Earlier this year, Inc42 reported about the struggles of Moj and the decline in its key metrics.

It also needs to be highlighted that the startup’s two cofounders – Bhanu Pratap Singh and Farid Ahsan – resigned last year. Following this, they founded a robotics startup General Autonomy and raised $3 Mn seed funding in November last year from venture capital firms India Quotient and Elevation Capital.

Like many other startups, Mohalla Tech has been hit hard by the ongoing funding winter, forcing it to take cost-cutting measures. The startup laid off around 800 employees in three layoff exercises last year and also pulled the plug on its fantasy app platform Jeet11 and live commerce business. Its rising losses made matters worse. 

The startup has raised over a billion dollars in funding so far and is backed by marquee investors like Google, Temasek, Moore Strategic Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Tiger Global, Twitter among others.

The post Exclusive: ShareChat Launches Social Media App ‘Vibely’ With Private Calling Feature appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Bengaluru-based used two-wheeler marketplace BeepKart fired around 130 employees in three rounds of layoffs in the last five months as part of a cost-cutting exercise amid a funding crunch, sources told Inc42.

The most recent restructuring exercise was undertaken in the last week of September, in which the startup let go of around 60-70 employees from its Bengaluru and Chennai offices and stores, the sources said.

Overall, BeepKart laid off around 40% of its employees in the last five months.

The latest restructuring exercise was undertaken in a similar manner to the previous two, with the founders addressing the employees in a town hall meeting. Following the meeting, the respective managers of the employees informed them that they were being laid off, multiple sources said.

“We were told the company was struggling to scale and didn’t have much cash to bear the cost, hence it was decided to undertake another round of layoffs,” one of the sources said.

The impacted employees were offered severance pay based on their notice periods. 

As part of this cost-cutting exercise, the startup also shut six out of its 11 stores across Bengaluru and Chennai over the last five months, as per the sources.

A questionnaire sent to BeepKart founders Hemir Doshi and Abhishek Saraf on the developments didn’t elicit any response till the time of publication of this story. 

Expansion Gone Wrong

Founded in 2021 by Doshi and Saraf, BeepKart operates a full-stack platform that allows users to buy and sell used two-wheelers online. The startup has raised a total funding of around $18 Mn till date and counts marquee investors like Vertex Ventures, Stellaris Venture Partners, Chiratae Ventures, and Innoven Capital among its backers. Currently, it offers its services in Bengaluru and Chennai.

According to the sources, strong competition and rising expenses forced the startup to reduce its headcount.

“Near the end of last year, BeepKart decided to expand its operations by opening new stores and hiring aggressively,” one of the sources said, adding that the startup was eyeing a rapid growth in its top line and looking to turn EBITDA positive.

As part of these plans, it opened new stores in Jayanagar, Rajajinagar, KR Puram in Bengaluru and Ashok Nagar and Poonamallee in Chennai. However, these stores failed to add to the startup’s top line and led to a surge in its costs. 

“The stores in Jayanagar and Kormangla were in the radius of just 4 kilometres. These stores cut each other’s market share, rather than adding new customers. The same happened with Poonamallee and Porur in Chennai,” one of the sources said. 

Following this, the startup changed its refurbishment policies in a bid to cut costs. This resulted in poor vehicle quality and customer complaints, the sources said. 

Inc42 also saw several social media posts with customers complaining about BeepKart. 

Meanwhile, BeepKart’s move to expand its margins by increasing prices also backfired as customers flocked to the startup’s competitors in the crowded space.

“Let’s say BeepKart is buying a bike at INR 60,000 from a customer and then trying to sell it at INR 1,00,000. When there are so many competitors in the space, why would a customer buy a used bike with so much of a premium when he/she can get it at INR 70,000 to INR 80,000 from competitors,” a source said.

BeepKart competes against the likes of TVS-backed DriveX, Yamaha-backed CredR, and BikeDekho, among others. 

The startup incurred a net loss of INR 28 Cr on an operating revenue of INR 22 Cr in FY23. While it is yet to file its financial statement for FY24, one of the sources said that it is likely to post a revenue of INR 100 Cr for the year.

The post Exclusive: BeepKart Fires 130 Employees In 5 Months To Cut Costs, Halves Store Count appeared first on Inc42 Media.

A total of 38 founders of 21 Indian new-age tech companies took home INR 179.3 Cr in cumulative annual salary in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24)!

However, the average founder salary plummeted 33% to INR 4.21 Cr in FY24 from INR 7.1 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

This comes at a time when the startup ecosystem continues to be in the grip of the funding winter, which began in 2022. As investors tightened the purse strings following the start of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022, there was mayhem in the Indian startup ecosystem, which was riding high on the bull run of 2020 and 2021.

Consider this: The total funding raised by Indian startups fell to $25 Bn in 2022 from $42 Bn a year ago. This number further plummeted to $10 Bn in 2023 and there was no improvement in the first half of 2024 as well.

This acute funding crunch has meant that Indian startups have had to take drastic measures to cut their costs and extend their runways. Following the onset of the funding winter, startups reduced their advertising and marketing budgets to cut losses or turn profitable in FY23. They also resorted to massive restructuring exercises which resulted in thousands of employees losing their jobs. Some of them even shut down operations.

Amid all these, Inc42 launched ‘Founder Salaries Tracker FY23’ to keep you updated with the salaries of the founders at a time when employees were losing jobs and taking pay cuts.

Continuing that, we are bringing to you the tracker for FY24, which was not much different from FY23. Consolidation remained the main theme in FY24 as well, as startups looked to improve their bottom lines even if they had to compromise on growth in their top lines.

As per the data collated by Inc42, the 17 aforementioned startups posted a cumulative operating revenue of INR 47,309 Cr in FY24. Of these, five startups reported a combined loss of INR 3,899 Cr, whereas the remaining reported a total profit of INR 2,209 Cr. 

For a deep dive into the financial numbers, take a look at Inc42’s ‘FY24 Financials Tracker’.

Now, let’s delve deeper into the salaries that the startup founders earned in the last financial year. The tracker will keep you informed about the remuneration earned by the founders in FY24, the percentage increase/ decrease in their salaries compared to FY23, and more.

Editor’s Note: This list is not a ranking of any kind. The companies have been placed alphabetically. This is a running list and will be updated periodically.

Founder Remuneration Tracker FY24

Companies are placed in alphabetical order | Data has been sourced from MCA filings, annual reports, and DRHPs |

*Note: Includes Share-based payments, reimbursements, bonus, variable pay, among others

Supam Maheshwari | FirstCry

Supam Maheshwari, the founder of recently listed ecommerce marketplace FirstCry, retained the top spot in terms of annual remuneration in FY24 as well. As per the startup’s red herring prospectus, the founder took home INR 103.8 Cr as remuneration in FY24, which was almost 50% lower than INR 200.7 Cr a year ago.

However, it needs to be highlighted that this amount includes short-term employment benefits, share based payments accrual, and excludes provisions for gratuity, compensated absences and other long term employment benefits which have been actuarially determined and the amounts pertaining to the key managerial personnel (KMP) are not material.

FirstCry reported an operating revenue of INR 6,480 Cr, with a loss of INR 321.5 Cr in FY24. 

Vijay Shekhar Sharma | Paytm

Vijay Shekhar Sharma, the managing director of fintech giant Paytm, was at the second spot with an annual remuneration of INR 4.4 Cr during the year under review. Sharma, who is one of the most active angel investors in the county, saw a 10% hike in his annual remuneration in FY24 compared to INR 4 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Varun Alagh | Mamaearth

Varun Alagh, the CEO of publicly listed beauty care startup Mamaearth, took home INR 3.97 Cr in annual remuneration in the recently concluded financial year. He received a hefty increment of 166.4% compared to INR 1.49 Cr he took home in the previous year. 

In comparison, his wife Ghazal Alagh, who is the cofounder of the startup, took home INR 1.79 Cr in remuneration in FY24, a jump of 80.8% higher than INR 99 Lakh in the previous fiscal year. 

The Delhi NCR-based startup reported an operating revenue of INR 1,919.9 Cr during the year under review with a profit of INR 110.5 Cr. 

Edited By Vinaykumar Rai

Last Updated On October 4, 6:35 PM IST

The post Founder Salaries Tracker FY24: How Much Did Startup Founders Earn? appeared first on Inc42 Media.

In a relief to OYO, the Ahmedabad City Civil Court ordered to unseal one of the offices of the hospitality unicorn, saying the action was illegal. 

The order came a day after the court passed a “distress warrant” against OYO Hotels and Home Private Limited. Following this, a bailiff sealed OYO’s property, which is a coworking space. 

The startup moved the court against this move 

As per the order dated October 1, 2024, the Ahmedabad City Civil Court said that the decision to seal the property was beyond its jurisdiction. “… this court only issued a distress warrant though the service person went beyond said warrant and sealed the property,” the order read. 

At the heart of the issue is a payment dispute between Ahmedabad-based Meridian Hotels Ltd, which claims overdue payments from OYO. The dispute between the two parties went to arbitration and a sole arbitrator ordered OYO to pay INR 4.6 Cr to Meridian Hotels.

In its order, the court said that Meridian Hotels application didn’t mention that OYO had already challenged the arbitration award. “The court passed the order for warrant under impression that subjected award finality,” the court noted. 

Following the order, the sealed office was reopened around 5 PM today on Tuesday (October 1). 

Responding to Inc42’s queries, Gaurav Dave from Nanavati Associates, which represented OYO in the case, said, “The Honourable Court has passed an order of removing the seal today itself from the coworking place. The Honourable Judge noted that the opposite party misled the court by not disclosing that this was an ongoing litigation under appeal and that the bailiff has overstepped his jurisdiction in the blocking action of coworking space.”

Meanwhile, Inc42 has learnt that Meridian Hotels plans to appeal against the order court in the coming days.

Commenting on the issue, an OYO spokesperson said that partial access to the coworking office, in which some of its employees also sit, was blocked temporarily. 

“This is a matter where the appeal is pending in front of the court; however, it was hidden by Mr Tekwani’s (Meridian Hotels’ owner) counsel with an intent of mischief to reach out office premises. The court, after learning this matter is under appeal, has issued access to the coworking office again with immediate effect… Most of our employees in Ahmedabad sit out of company-owned hotels. The other companies sitting from the coworking space continued to have access,” the spokesperson added.

Commenting on the dispute, the spokesperson said that it is an “old rare” ongoing litigation from 2020 regarding the organisation terminating a hotel contract due to non-compliant hotel conditions. 

“We didn’t receive any prior notice which is mandatory in law, else no action would have happened in a sub judice case. We are also confident of winning this case and have full respect for the court’s final verdict,” the spokesperson added.

Sources told Inc42 that the dispute between OYO and Meridian Hotels arose amid the pandemic in 2020, when the former changed its business model. 

Prior to the pandemic, OYO used to provide a minimum revenue guarantee to hoteliers. It also used to have around 5 years of Master Service Agreement with hoteliers, with a lock-in period of a couple of years. 

Following the pandemic, OYO moved to a revenue-sharing model, resulting in several hotels moving court against it citing breach of agreement and overdue payments.

The latest development came days after OYO announced a $525 Mn acquisition of US-based G6 Hospitality, the parent entity of Motel 6 and Studio 6 brands, in a bid to expand its footprint in the US. The unicorn is eyeing international expansion to grow its top and bottom lines. In August, OYO also acquired Paris-based Checkmyguest.

Talking about financials, the startup posted its first complete year of profit in FY24. It reported a net profit of INR 229 Cr in the year ended March 31, 2024 as against a net loss of INR 1,286.5 Cr in the previous year. Operating revenue declined 1.3% to INR 5,388.7 Cr from INR 5,463.9 Cr in FY23.

The post Ahmedabad Court Calls Sealing Of OYO’s Office Illegal, Restores Access appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Bengaluru-based fintech unicorn CRED’s operating revenue jumped 71% to INR 2,397 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 1,400 Cr in the previous fiscal year. The Kunal Shah-led startup attributed the rise in revenue to increase in member engagement and monetisation. 

Including other income, total revenue rose 66% to INR 2,473 Cr during the year under review from INR 1,484 Cr in FY23.

Despite the surge in its top line, CRED’s net loss increased in FY24. Its net loss stood at INR 1,644 Cr, up 22% from INR 1,347 Cr in FY23.While the startup didn’t disclose all the financial metrics, it said its operating loss declined 41% to INR 609 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,024 Cr in the previous year. 

Operating expenditure, including one-time costs, stood at INR 3,082 Cr in FY24, it said. 

Founded in 2018 by Shah, CRED’s initially offered rewards and benefits to premium credit card users for paying their bills. However, it has been on the super app path for the last few years and has launched a number of new services in order to monetise its customer base. 

CRED now caters to UPI payments, billing for utilities, vehicle management, travel experiences, among others. Earlier this year, it also acquired investech platform Kuvera to take on the likes of Zerodha, Groww, and PhonePe.

On the impact of the new offerings, CRED said it saw its monetised customer base grow 58% in FY24. It claimed that its contribution margin, including all variable costs, grew over 20X and it has been contribution margin-positive for nine consecutive quarters.

The startup’s marketing expenditure fell 36% year-on-year during the year under review, while its monthly transacting users jumped 34%. CRED further highlighted that as a result of increasing adoption of its UPI payment services CRED pay, the platform’s total payment value (TPV) surged 55% to INR 6.87 lakh Cr in FY24. 

CRED said its vehicle maintenance platform CRED garage gained traction with over 4.2 Mn vehicles parked on the platform in FY24 for challan and pollution certificate checks, FASTag recharges, and insurance renewals. 

Shah, during a media briefing, said that CRED plans to launch a number of new products this year and the next year, which will help it further monetise its user base. On a question on fundraise, the CEO said that CRED is well capitalised at the moment. 

CRED, last valued at $6.4 Bn, has raised over $800 Mn in funding since its inception and counts Tiger Global, Peak XV Partners, and Dragoneer Investments among its backers. 

The post CRED’s FY24 Revenue Zooms 66% To INR 2,473 Cr, Operating Loss Down 41% appeared first on Inc42 Media.

IPO-bound Swiggy managed to narrow its loss by 44% in the financial year ended March 31, 2024. The decacorn startup incurred a net loss of INR 2,350 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) as against a loss of INR 4,179.3 Cr in FY23. 

In the first three months of the ongoing financial year – FY25, the Prosus-backed startup reported a loss of INR 611 Cr. 

Meanwhile, Swiggy’s operating revenue zoomed 36% to INR 11,247.3 Cr in FY24 from INR 8,264.5 Cr in the previous year, on the back of growth of its quick commerce business – Swiggy Instamart. 

Swiggy earns revenue from its food delivery business, quick commerce business, restaurant reservation and events ticketing platform – DineOut and SteppingOut, and supply chain services provided to wholesalers among others.

• The food delivery business generated a total operating revenue of INR 5,160 Cr in FY24, a 25% increase from INR 4,129.9 Cr a year ago 
• The quick commerce business reported an operating revenue of INR 978.5 Cr in FY24, almost 2X growth from INR 451.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year 
• The out of home consumption business, which comprises DineOut and SteppingOut, posted an operating revenue of INR 157.1 Cr, an increase of 102% from INR 77.6 Cr in FY23 
• Swiggy’s platform innovation business, which includes Swiggy Minis, Swiggy Genie, and its private labels, contributed INR 171.9 Cr in revenue, a 46% drop from INR 319.2 Cr in the previous fiscal year 

Including other income, the startup reported a total revenue of INR 11,634.3 Cr in FY24, up 33% higher from INR 8,714.3 Cr in the previous fiscal.

In comparison, Swiggy’s listed rival Zomato reported a net profit of INR 351 Crin FY24 on an operating revenue of  INR 12,114 Cr.

Where Did Swiggy Spend?

The IPO-bound company managed to control the rise in its expenses. Total expenditure rose a mere 8% to INR 13,947.3 Cr in FY24 from INR 12,884.3 Cr in FY23. In the first three months of FY25, the startup’s total expenses stood at INR 3,907.9 Cr

Procurement Cost: As the startup doubled down on its quick commerce business, Swiggy’s procurement cost was the biggest expenditure in FY24. It accounted for almost 33% of the total expenditure. Procurement cost stood at INR 4,604 Cr in FY24, up 36% from INR 3,380.7 Cr in FY23. 

Employee Cost: This was the second largest cost head for Swiggy. However, employee benefit expenses declined 6% to INR 2,012.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,129.8 Cr in FY23. Cost of share-based payments stood at INR 596 Cr, a slight increase from INR 533.9 Cr in FY23. 

Advertising and Sales Promotion: Like any other startup trying to curb its losses, Swiggy also reduced its advertising expenses by 26% to INR 1,850.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,501 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

The startup’s EBITDA margin improved to -16.2% in FY24 from -46.4% in FY23. Adjusted EBITDA loss almost halved to INR 1,835.5 Cr in FY24 from a loss of INR 3,910.3 Cr in the previous year.

Founded in 2014 by Sriharsha Majety, Nandan Reddy, Phani Kishan Addepalli, and Rahul Jaimini, Swiggy started off as a food delivery startup but later forayed into the quick commerce segment with Instamart.

After much anticipation, Swiggy publicly filed its IPO papers or draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) on Thursday (September 26). The public offer will comprise a fresh issue of shares worth INR 3,750 Cr ($450 Mn) and an offer for sale component of around 18.53 Cr shares..

Investors such as Accel, Coatue, Alpha Wave, Elevation, Norwest and Tencent will sell shares as part of the OFS. While Accel India IV (Mauritius) Ltd will offload 1.05 Cr shares, Alpha Wave Ventures will sell 55.73 Lakh shares. 

The company plans to utilise the IPO proceeds for marketing and promotion, investing in technology and cloud infrastructure, funding inorganic growth through acquisitions and for general corporate purposes.

The post Swiggy DRHP: Revenue Crosses INR 10,000 Cr Mark In FY24, Loss Almost Halves appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Bengaluru-based OPEN seems to be struggling to scale up its operations. The neobanking startup’s operating revenue declined 17% to INR 24.8 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 29.9 Cr in FY23.

Founded in 2017 by Jacob, Anish Achuthan, Ajeesh Achuthan, and Mabel Chacko, OPEN offers business banking, payments and expense management solutions to small and medium businesses (SMBs) across the country. It has three major products – OPEN Flo, OPEN Settl and OPEN Capital.

OPEN earns a majority of its revenue from the sale of services. The unicorn breaks down its revenue from operations into two major categories – subscription revenue and commission on services.

Including other income, the startup’s total revenue declined 13% to INR 46.1 Cr from INR 53.1 Cr in FY23. 

With the decline in revenue, the Temasek-backed startup’s net loss also reduced 30% to INR 170 Cr during the year under review from INR 242.2 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Where Did OPEN Spend?

The startup’s total expenditure dropped 34% to INR 194.6 Cr in FY24 from INR 296.5 Cr in FY23. 

Employee Benefit Expenditure: Despite a 22% year-on-year decline, employee cost was the biggest expenditure for the startup. It spent INR 117 Cr under the head in FY24 as against INR 149 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Information Technology Expense: Information technology cost stood at INR 23.8 Cr in FY24, a decline of 16% from INR 28.5 Cr in FY23. 

Advertising Expenditure: The startup slashed its advertising expenditure by a whopping 85% to INR 8.8 Cr from INR 57.6 Cr in FY23. 

Despite the decline in total expenses, OPEN spent INR 7.84 to earn every rupee from operations. OPEN currently claims to process over $30 Bn in annualised transactions. 

In December last year, the startup received the final approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as a payment aggregator. 

OPEN entered the unicorn club in May 2022 after raising $50 Mn from existing investor IIFL. The startup has raised a total funding of $190 Mn till date. It counts Temasek, 3one4 Capital, SBI Investment, and Tiger Global among its backers. 

It competes against the likes of Oxyzo, Yubi, and Navi.

The post OPEN Spent INR 195 Cr To Earn INR 25 Cr Revenue In FY24 appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Nine months after joining Ola Consumer (formerly known as Ola Cabs) as its global chief business officer (CBO), Sidharth Shakdher is exiting the startup, sources told Inc42. 

In his role as global CBO, Shakdher used to oversee Ola’s revenue, growth, and marketing efforts in India, and cab business in international markets. 

Shakdher put down his papers recently and will be with the startup for about few more weeks, the sources said. 

“He is leaving Ola Consumer to pursue something on his own,” one of the sources said, adding that the Bhavish Aggarwal-led startup will announce a new CBO soon.

A query mail sent to Ola didn’t elicit any response till the time of publishing this story. Shakdher didn’t respond to Inc42’s calls and messages. 

Shakdher has over 24 years of industry experience. Before joining Ola, he was the chief marketing officer at Disney+ Hotstar. Prior to that, he was the head of marketing and growth at Amazon.

The fresh development comes almost a month after Ola Cabs was rebranded as Ola Consumer. Aggarwal, during the Ola Group’s annual event on August 15, said Ola Consumer will offer a host of consumer services to make ecommerce more accessible, affordable and efficient. 

In his address, Aggarwal said that the company will address multiple consumer issues via Ola Consumer. Firstly, he announced the relaunch of ride sharing service Ola Share. The service, which allows users to get cheaper rides by sharing them with others, was to go live in Bengaluru, followed by a nationwide rollout. 

Under the service, Ola said that trip deviations would be limited to less than 20 minutes and a maximum of two people can avail a shared taxi under the model. 

The company also launched a loyalty programme, Ola Coin. Under this, users transacting on Ola platform will get personalised loyalty benefits which can be redeemed across mobility, ecommerce and logistics services of Ola. 

Earlier this year, Ola Cabs laid off around 10% of its workforce. Its Indian CEO Hemant Bakshi also resigned within months of joining. 

Founded in 2010, Ola Consumer competes against the likes of Uber, BluSmart, Rapido in the ride-hailing segment in the country. 

ANI Technologies, the parent entity of Ola Consumer, saw its operating revenue rise 42% year-on-year to INR 2,779.3 Cr in FY23. Its loss halved to INR 772.3 Cr during the year.

The post Exclusive: Nine Months After Joining, Ola Consumer’s CBO Sidharth Shakdher Quits appeared first on Inc42 Media.

India Lifestyle Network (ILN), which runs MensXP, iDiva, and Hypp, is looking to separate from its parent Mensa Brands, sources told Inc42.

ILN founder Angad Bhatia is in talks with VC and PE firms to buy out Mensa’s stake in ILN. Mensa currently holds 100% stake in ILN. 

Confirming the development, Bhatia told Inc42, “… Mensa and ILN have been approached by a few strategic investors given the interest in new-age media and the assets ILN has built. Both ILN and Mensa are excited and considering these options, and are also now in discussions with other stakeholders in the larger content and media ecosystem.”

ILN wants to operate as a separate entity as it believes that Mensa’s growth priorities don’t align completely with ILN’s, the sources said, adding that Mensa is unable to provide the capital required for ILN’s growth.

“Once the separation is complete, ILN will run independently and continue to raise capital to grow further,” one of the sources said.

Bhatia further told Inc42, “Given the strategic interest from multiple players we will explore what makes sense. ⁠Both ILN & Mensa teams are excited about aligning with an institution that supports its growth ambitions while maintaining synergies with Mensa.”

MensXP, a lifestyle portal for men founded in 2009, plans to foray into offering educational courses as an independent entity. Besides, it is likely to restart its influencer-commerce business, which it shut down after its acquisition by Mensa. 

Responding to this, Bhatia said, “Both MensXP and iDiva have established scaled audience platforms, tightly knit communities, and video shows tapping into social culture. This forms the foundation for their commerce initiatives. You may recall that MensXP previously built a large ecommerce footprint across beauty, fashion, and more before its acquisition by Mensa. There’s strong conviction around rebuilding ILN’s commerce ambitions with fresh formats.”

Mensa acquired ILN in 2022 for about $100 Mn from Times Internet. Inc42 exclusively reported about the acquisition then.

The three brands under ILN have amassed over 20 Mn social media followers, over 100 Mn monthly active users (MAUs), and over 250 Mn video views per month since their inception. 

iDiva, incorporated in 2009, is a women-focussed platform that generates content across beauty, fashion, health and wellness, and lifestyle categories, among others. Delhi NCR-based Hypp is a full-stack creator management and marketing platform for digital influencers.

On the other hand, Mensa was founded in 2021 by former Myntra CEO Ananth Narayanan. It is a house of brands unicorn that acquires digital-first startups across sectors and then scales them. Its cap table includes Accel Partners, Prosus, Tiger Global, Alpha Wave, Norwest Ventures, CRED’s Kunal Shah, among others. 

Mensa has raised over $300 Mn in funding till date and was one of the fastest startups to achieve the unicorn status. 

Mensa has acquired brands such as Pebble, Karagiri, MensXP, and iDiva, Dennis Lingo, among others, till date.

The post Exclusive: Two Years After Acquisition, MensXP Eyes Separation From Parent Mensa Brands appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Delhi NCR-based deeptech startup Proxgy is in advanced stages of discussion to raise around $5 Mn in its Series A funding round, sources told Inc42. 

The funding round will see participation from Nikhil Kamath’s Gruhas, Bollywood actor Suniel Shetty, and Manish Patel, who is a minority stakeholder in the Caribbean Premier League franchise Barbados Royals.

The round will value the startup at a post-money valuation of INR 425 Cr (about $51 Mn), the sources added.

Proxy aims to use the fresh funds for overseas expansion, scaling up production capabilities, and expanding its team. 

One of the sources said that the funding round was oversubscribed and the startup aims to raise another round soon after the conclusion of this funding round.

A mail sent to Proxgy seeking details about the ongoing funding round didn’t elicit any response till the time of publishing this story.

Proxgy last raised $2 Mn in its pre-Series A funding round in October last year. The round was  led by LetsVenture, Plantify Angel Fund, Mach Tech Fund, Cogniphy Angel Fund, Madhuram Papers Family Office, and AKGVG & Associates, along with its existing investors. 

The round was a blend of primary and secondary fund infusions.

Founded by Pulkit Ahuja in 2020, Proxgy is a deeptech startup that specialises in internet of things (IoT) based solutions. It also provides smart wearables and safety products to blue collar workers to prioritise workplace safety and efficiency. 

It currently offers four products:

• SmartHat: A Type 1 Zone C classified smart safety helmet designed to enhance workplace safety. The helmet comes equipped with real-time tracking, environmental sensors, human condition monitoring sensors, and communication tools to enhance situational awareness for workers in industries such as construction, manufacturing, mining, and oil & gas.
• Sleefe: A lightweight, easy-to-use smart device that attaches to any cap and converts it into a smart cap. Sleefe is equipped with a camera, speakers, and mic, enabling a wide range of on- and off-field optimisations in industries such as logistics, warehousing, policing, surveillance, and banking.
• Lockator: A 4G-enabled smart industrial lock that provides on-the-move security and access control solutions for cargos, containers, and facilities. The lock is capable of geofencing, NFC+RFID unlock, GPS and speed tracking of shipping containers, satellite connectivity in the absence of a network, and tamper-proof e-SIMs.
• AudioPod: A 4G-enabled soundbox used for instant payment confirmation received from QR codes from all leading payment banks. The startup claims that the soundbox offers first-in-segment customisable features like an LED screen and thermal printer.

Proxgy currently caters to leading players across various industries, including power, fintech, logistics, warehousing, construction, mining, oil & gas & banking. 

Proxy also bagged INR 1 Cr from Lenskart’s Peyush Bansal and Ashneer Grover in Shark Tank India’s debut season.

The post Proxgy In Talks To Raise $5 Mn From Nikhil Kamath’s Gruhas, Others At $51 Mn Valuation appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Funding, business models and the financial performance of unicorns is always in the news, but we find that very little is known about the people who are often the driving force behind these new-age tech giants. 

These are the people who are often tasked with managing hundreds or even thousands of employees, business verticals that bring in crores of revenue and shape the tech ecosystem. 

Which is ironic for startups such as logistics unicorn Shiprocket, because like the logistics tech sector itself, the contribution of the company’s key leaders has flown under the radar despite its meaningful impact. 

The Zomato-backed company has gone from a third-party logistics tech player to a one-stop logistics enabler for D2C and retail brands, and added pieces to its armory such as digital marketing, data analytics, customer service solutions and more. 

Incorporated in 2012 and launched in 2017 as a digital platform, the Gurugram-based startup was founded by Saahil Goel, Vishesh Khurana, Akshay Gulati and Gautam Kapoor. Like many unicorns of its vintage, Shiprocket has raised plenty of capital — close to $400 Mn from the likes of Bertelsmann India, Zomato, Tribe Capital, Info Edge among others — and has added various verticals to its core 3PL platform. 

It’s also now piloting an ecommerce marketplace called Zop, as Inc42 reported earlier this year. In some ways, Shiprocket has gone about creating a full-stack marketplace with a logistics-first go-to-market strategy, and then building (or acquiring) the requisite infrastructure for ecommerce before the marketplace. 

But the goal is not to build a vertical stack dedicated only to Shiprocket. As Goel told us, the idea is to build “an open ecosystem for our merchants and not vertical or horizontal integration”.  

This integration is expected to help the startup grow its revenue from the INR 1,080 Cr it reported in FY23.
While Shiprocket is more than happy to talk about press releases or news stories that are easily available for these product launches, little is known about the people who are working on them, many of whom have actually been critical in shaping this new avatar of Shiprocket over the past two years.

Shiprocket’s Young Leadership Team

Just like any other startup, in Shiprocket the buck too stops at the CEO. The entire leadership team, including three cofounders, reports directly to CEO and managing director Saahil Goel. 

Ever since the startup’s Series E investment of $185 Mn from Zomato, Temasek, among others in December 2021, Goel has almost rejigged the entire leadership team, as the company readied itself for the next growth arc. 

According to our findings, besides the founders, almost 89% of the entire leadership team joined Shiprocket in 2021, meaning the majority of the leadership team has been there for the last three years. 

For instance in 2021, Praful Poddar joined as the chief product officer, coming from OLX and with 16 years of work experience. He is said to be the brain behind the new products that Shiprocket has launched, with the latest being ‘Shiprocket Quick’ – a same-day shipping service to participate in the quick commerce rush.

Besides Poddar, the company hired Atul Mehta as the CEO of domestic shipping, as it looked to solidify the leadership around the core shipping vertical.

Vitally for Shiprocket, Tanmay Kumar came on board as the CFO in October 2021. Kumar is critical for Shiprocket as it looks to raise funds ahead of its final push towards the IPO. He is actively said to be involved in an upcoming $75 Mn – $100 Mn fund raise from Tribe Capital and Koch, which has been in the news for several months.

It was also under the new CFO that Shiprocket acquired five companies – Glaucus Supply Chain Solutions, Wigzo, Pickrr, Omuni, and Rocketbox – to expand its product offerings.

Currently, all the acquired business product offerings are integrated into the Shiprocket platform as modules. While Glaucus’s offering is merged into Shiprocket’s fulfillment solutions, Wigzo’s solution has been integrated into Shiprocket Engage 360. Pickrr and Omuni offerings have been directly integrated into Shiprocket’s core offerings, while Rocketbox has been merged into Shiprocket Cargo. 

Speaking of the acquisitions. It is curious that despite bringing on several founders experienced in leading these products, all of these founders have left the company, except Pickrr cofounder Gaurav Mangla. 

Some of them have moved on to start their own ventures. One such instance is Umair Mohammed of Wigzo, who now has launched Nitro Commerce and has already secured INR 50 Cr in funding.

The Road To IPO

While the product integration took place in FY23, its reflection on the startup’s topline will be seen in FY24 financials. Where will Shiprocket finish in FY24? 

As the startup gears up for its IPO, Goel claimed that the startup is working towards achieving profitability by FY25. 

While for the time being, Goel seems to have found the right set of leaders, problems might arise in the coming months as the startup intends to continue its acquisition spree to further expand its product offerings. 

It must be highlighted that Khurana, one of the cofounders, has now moved to an advisory role as he has joined as the managing partner of Tribe Capital. So there could be further reshuffles in this regard going forward. 

As a company that’s heading for an IPO, Shiprocket cannot present a very top-heavy org chart. We have seen that most entities heading to IPOs have had to make several changes across the board to present the right set of key managerial personnel for the IPO filings. Another example is Swiggy, where there has been so much movement in the CXO layer. 

One of the potential challenges for Shiprocket, the average tenure of the leadership team is 2.3 years, which is relatively short for a company preparing for an IPO. By the time it hits the public markets, the company would have completed more than 13 years of operations, which puts this relatively new leadership team under some pressure. 

It remains to be seen how this relatively fresh leadership team will endure over time and through the challenges that come with public scrutiny

Edited by Nikhil Subramaniam

The post Shiprocket’s Top Navigators: The People Steering The Logistics Giant appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Mumbai-based beauty ecommerce marketplace Purplle’s revenue inched closer towards the INR 700 Cr mark in the financial year ended March 31, 2024. The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA)-backed unicorn reported an operating revenue of INR 679.6 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24), an increase of 43% from INR 475 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

The ecommerce marketplace primarily earns revenue through listing of products on its website. It earned INR 392.9 Cr through this in FY24, an increase of 72% from INR 227.9 Cr in the previous year. 

Besides this, income from sale of products rose 16% to INR 286.65 Cr during the year under review from INR 247 Cr in FY23. 

Founded in 2012 by Manish Taneja and Rahul Dash, Purplle sells beauty products and appliances. It sells products of several D2C brands, including Plum, WOW Skin Science, mCaffeine, Maybelline and SUGAR Cosmetics, on its platform. Beside, it also sells products under its private labels – Faces Canada and Good Vibes. 

Purplle managed to reduce its cash burn during the year under review, as a result of which its net loss plummeted 46% to INR 124.1 Cr from INR 230 Cr in FY23.

Where Did Purplle Spend?

Despite the 43% increase in its top line, Purplle’s total expenditure rose only 15% year-on-year. Its expenses stood at INR 849.6 Cr in FY24 as against INR 738.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Advertising Expenditure: Being an ecommerce marketplace, one of the biggest expenditures for the startup is advertising cost. At INR 209.4 Cr, Purplle’s advertising expenses accounted for 25% of its total expenses in FY24. However, the startup lowered the spending on advertising by 21% compared to the INR 266.5 Cr it spent in FY23.

Procurement Cost: Purplle spent INR 118.2 Cr under this head, an increase of 43% from INR 82.8 Cr in FY23. 

Employee Cost: Employee benefit expenses rose 21% to INR 191 Cr in FY24 from INR 170.5 Cr in the previous fiscal. This is an indication that the startup increased its employee headcount during the year. 

Purplle’s EBITDA margin improved to -12.5% in FY24 from -41.6% in FY23. 

Earlier this year, the startup bagged INR 1,000 Cr in a funding round led by a subsidiary of ADIA. The round was a mix of primary and secondary share sale and valued the startup at its last valuation of about $1.2 Bn – $1.3 Bn. 

Purplle has raised a total funding of about $400 Mn till date and counts the likes of Peak XV Partners, Premji Invest, and Ranjan Pai among its backers. 

The post Purplle’s FY24 Sales Zoom 43% To INR 680 Cr, Loss Almost Halves appeared first on Inc42 Media.

IPO-bound OYO turned profitable in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) as it managed to control its expenses by trimming its employee costs. The unicorn posted a net profit of INR 229.5 Cr during the year as against a net loss of INR 1,286.5 Cr in the previous financial year. OYO announced last month that it became profitable in FY24.

However, its operating revenue remained almost flat during the year under review. Revenue from operations stood at INR 5,388.7 Cr in FY24, a decline of 1.3% from INR 5,463.9 Cr in the previous fiscal year, as per its filings with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.

Last month, the startup said that while its hotel count grew to 18,103 at the end of FY24 from 12,938 hotels a year ago, the new hotels will take time to achieve their full potential.

Including other income, OYO’s total revenue declined 1% to INR 5,541.5 Cr from INR 5,601.7 Cr in FY23. 

Founded in 2012 by Ritesh Agarwal, OYO is a hospitality startup and claims to offer over 40 integrated products and solutions to patrons who operate more than 157K hotels and home storefronts in more than 35 countries, including India, Europe, and Southeast Asia.

Where Did OYO Spend?

The startup managed to reduce its total expenditure by 16% to INR 5,725.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 6,799.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Lease Costs: OYO’s biggest expenditure was its lease costs, which accounted for 46% of the overall costs. This expense included service lease component and lease rentals. However, lease costs dropped 8% to INR 2,629.5 Cr from INR 2,843.3 Cr in FY23.  

Employee Costs: The primary reason behind the decline in total expenditure was the reduction in employee costs. Employee benefit expenses fell 52% to INR 744.3 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,548.8 Cr in the previous fiscal year. This decline was due to a 71.3% fall in employee share based expenses to INR 180.6 Cr in FY24 from INR 630.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Finance Costs: OYO’s finance cost rose 24% to INR 843.8 Cr during the year under review from INR 681.5 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Last month, Agarwal said OYO is looking to triple its profit after tax (PAT) to INR 700 Cr in FY25. 

Recently, OYO raised INR 1,457 Cr (around $175 Mn) in a down round led by Agarwal floated Singapore-based entity Patient Capital, along with J&A Partners and ASK Financial Holdings.

The latest funding saw OYO’s valuation fall to $2.37 Bn from $10 Bn at its peak in 2019. The round also included July’s INR 417 Cr investment from InCred in OYO. 

While OYO has been eyeing a public market listing for some time, its IPO has been deferred a couple of times now. Sources told Inc42 that the plans are likely to be pushed back further as the company awaits the terms of the refinancing deal for the $660 Mn Term Loan B availed by founder and CEO Agarwal to buy back shares from investors in 2019. 

As it prepares for its public listing, here’s a deeper look at the executives responsible for the startup’s growth. 

The post OYO Turns Profitable With INR 229 Cr PAT In FY24 As Employee Costs Halve appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Hyperlocal logistics startup Porter managed to narrow its net loss by 45% in the financial year ended March 31, 2024 due to lower cash burn. The Peak XV Partners-backed startup’s loss declined to INR 95.7 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24)  from INR 174.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Operating revenue zoomed 56% to INR 2,733.7 Cr during the year under review from INR 1,737.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Porter offers B2B and B2C logistics service. It primarily earns revenue by providing transportation services through its own fleet. 

Including total income, the startup’s total revenue stood at INR 2,766.4 Cr in FY24, an increase of 54.5% from INR 1,789.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Founded in 2014 by Pranav Goel, Vikas Chaudhary, and Uttam Digga, Porter claims to provide distance-based allocation, GPS tracking, proactive notifications, and more, to empower its driver partners.

Where Did Porter Spend?

The startup’s total expenditure rose 46% to INR 2,862.1 Cr during the year under review from INR 1,964 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Fleet Operator Cost: This cost accounted for 83% of Porter’s total expenditure, rising 50% to INR 2,369 Cr from INR 1,578.8 Cr in FY23.

Employee Expenses: The second biggest expense for the startup was its employee costs. Porter spent INR 237.3 Cr on employee benefits in FY24, an increase of 24% from INR 190.9 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

EBITDA margin improved to -2.93% in FY24 from -9.46% in the previous fiscal year. 

Porter has raised a total funding of about $132 Mn till date and counts marquee investors such as Tiger Global, Peak XV, Lightrock, and Kae Capital among its backers.

Earlier this year, Moneycontrol reported that Porter entered the coveted unicorn club following an internal funding round. However, the startup hasn’t provided any clarity on it till date. 

Porter competes against the likes of Shadowfax, Dunzo, Swiggy Genie, Pidge, among others.

The post Porter FY24: Loss Declines 45% To INR 96 Cr, Revenue Crosses INR 2,500 Cr Mark appeared first on Inc42 Media.

The month of September started relatively in a high spirit as far as the startup funding is concerned. In the first week of the ongoing month, i.e., between September 2 and 7, Indian startups collectively managed to secure $348 Mn in funding across 19 deals, 25% lower than $466 Mn raised by 16 startups in the closing week of August. 

The week further saw two mega deals with Drip Capital bagging $133 Mn, and Rapido finally announcing its massive $200 Mn funding from WestBridge Capital. 

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [ Sept 2– Sept 7 ]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Bike taxi startup and now a cab aggregator Rapido entered the unicorn club with $200 Mn from WestBridge Capital.
• Fuelled by Rapido’s fundraise, the traveltech sector became the funded sector with an investment of $204 Mn deals
• In terms of number of deals, the ecommerce sector bagged the most with five deals, raking $9.4 Mn
• The seed funding soared to $10.7Mn this week across eight deals, an over 200% higher than $3.05 Mn reported last week. 

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• Alternative credit provider Blacksoil Capital and impact investment lender Caspian Debt have got unanimous approval from their boards of directors to merge via a share swap agreement.
• Ather Energy is looking to file its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) next week for an INR 4,500 Cr IPO in a mix of a fresh issue and offer for sale (OFS).
• Mumbai-based venture debt firm VentureSoul Partners has marked the first close of its INR 600 Cr maiden fund, raising INR 146.5 Cr ($17.4 Mn).
• Mumbai-based lendingtech startup SarvaGram is reportedly in discussions to raise a fresh funding of around $50 Mn from both new and existing investors.
• OfBusiness has begun preparations for an initial public offering (IPO) of up to $1 Bn and is close to finalising the bankers for its public listing in the second half of 2025.
• LetsVenture has launched LV Debt, a marketplace designed to educate founders and offer debt financing tailored to the specific requirements of startups.
• Money View is looking to raise INR 250 Cr (around $29.8 Mn) from unidentified investors through private placement of non-convertible debentures (NCDs).
• Hindustan Composites said it has signed a share purchase agreement to acquire a stake in IPO-bound foodtech major Swiggy for INR 5.175 Cr. 

The post From Drip Capital To Rapido – Indian Startups Raised $348 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Following in the footsteps of Zomato, IPO-bound Swiggy is piloting a large order fleet in Delhi NCR region. The Bengaluru-based startup began the pilot recently, sources told Inc42.

The Invesco-backed startup has tied up with a three-wheeler electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer for the large order fleet, the sources added. 

Besides food delivery, the large order fleet can also be used for Instamart deliveries. However, Inc42 couldn’t ascertain if Swiggy is using the fleet only for food deliveries, like Zomato, or also for quick commerce deliveries.

A mail sent to Swiggy seeking details about the large order fleet didn’t elicit any response till the time of publishing this story. 

The development comes almost four months after Swiggy’s listed rival Zomato launched a large order fleet to handle food orders for large groups or events. 

Prior to this, Swiggy had launched UPI services almost a year after Zomato launched similar services. Earlier today, Swiggy launched incognito mode on its app which won’t record order history. This came almost a month after Zomato offered an option to delete orders from the app’s history. 

Swiggy has also launched a number of other features this year, such as Eatlists, Explore Mode, Reordering, and Similar Carts.

The developments come ahead of the startup’s much-anticipated IPO. Swiggy filed its draft IPO papers via the confidential route with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) earlier this year.

The startup is reportedly eyeing a valuation of $15 Bn for its $1 Bn to $1.2 Bn IPO, up from its last valuation of $10.7 Bn in 2022. The IPO will include a fresh issue of shares worth INR 3,750.1 Cr and an offer for sale component of up to INR 6,664 Cr.

Swiggy’s revenue grew 36% year-on-year (YoY) to INR 11,247 Cr in FY24, while net loss narrowed 44% to INR 2,350 Cr.

The post Exclusive: Following Zomato’s Footsteps, IPO-Bound Swiggy Pilots Large Order Fleet appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Conducting its third restructuring exercise in about 16 months, virtual event startup Airmeet laid off around 80% of its tech team last month, sources told Inc42.

The Prosus-backed startup also fired some employees from its product and design teams as part of the restructuring exercise. Overall, around 30 employees, or 20% of Airmeet’s workforce, were laid off, the sources added.

The layoffs were a part of a cost-cutting exercise as the startup has continued to struggle to increase its revenue in the post-pandemic world, one of the sources said, adding that the number of employees impacted by the latest restructuring could be higher.

Airmeet cofounder and CTO Vinay Kumar Jasti held one-on-one conversations with the impacted employees to inform them about the layoffs. 

The impacted employees will receive a severance package based on their notice periods.

Confirming the layoffs, Airmeet cofounder and CEO Lalit Mangal told Inc42, “We have right sized the team to focus on investing in better and more AI-powered features.” 

Airmeet’s Post-Pandemic Struggles

Founded in 2019 by ​​Mangal, Jasti, and Manoj Kumar Singh, Airmeet is an online meeting and event hosting platform. It also allows participants to connect with other attendees for one-to-one and one-to-many online interactions. 

The startup saw a surge in demand during the Covid-19 pandemic amid the stay-at-home mandates. This also resulted in a lot of investor interest in the startup. However, as the world opened up after the pandemic and virtual events started seeing a sharp decline, Airmeet struggled to increase its revenue. 

Now, the startup seems to have decided to focus on new products. “We are already working on our second product which will be launched soon. Our outlook is to build an R&D function which is largely in-person, based in Bengaluru and wired with the latest AI-powered tools,” Mangal said.

While he didn’t give details about the new product, the CEO said that it will not be focussed on the events space.

This is in line with what the aforementioned sources told Inc42. They said that the startup has decided not to upgrade the existing event management product, which led to the decision to let the entire engineering team go. 

The fresh round of layoffs came almost five months after Inc42 reported that the startup laid off around 20% of its workforce to cut costs.

Prior to that, the startup fired around 30% of its 250-300 people workforce, or at least 75 employees, in May 2023.

Overall, Airmeet has sacked over 100 employees in the last 16 months. 

Airmeet has raised a total funding of about $50 Mn till date and counts the likes of Accel, Peak XV Partners, Sistema Asia Fund, DG Daiwa Ventures, and Nexxus Global among its backers.

On its website, the startup claims to have worked with over 4,000 organisations, including Ford, Unilever, PwC, Capgemini, among others.

The post Exclusive: Prosus-Backed Airmeet Undertakes Another Restructuring Exercise, Fires 80% Tech Team appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Bengaluru-based Stoa, the poster child of alternative MBA courses, is piloting a new AI-based enterprise agent platform called Zeus. 

The startup claims that Zeus is an organisation alignment platform that helps companies “build focus and momentum” for their team, but by all indications, it is an AI enterprise agent that automates workflows and tasks for large teams. 

While not much information is available on the website, Stoa cofounders Aditya Kulkarni and Raj Kunkolienkar have teased the new product on LinkedIn for several weeks now. While Kulkarni called Zeus a CEO’s best friend, Kunkolienkar said it is an “AI Chief of Staff”.

Their posts indicate that Zeus is an app built into the email inbox. Users can ask questions or seek suggestions for particular tasks, and Zeus is meant to respond with appropriate actions or answers, as is the case with other agents and enterprise chatbots. 

As per Kunkolienkar’s post, Zeus is launching with a wide set of features that cover tasks such as minutes of meetings, work assignment, research and more.  

• Send personalised emails to people in the organisation after meetings, even if they haven’t attended the meeting
• Can take instructions over the call and dispatch work to people
• Do internet research on topics discussed
• Draft documents/mails
• Brainstorm and come up with solutions
• Ask for elaboration on points
• Relay messages to others

Inc42 could not get more clarity from Stoa about Zeus despite multiple attempts to contact the founders. Currently, Stoa is accepting early-access applications for Zeus.

Stoa School, billed as an alternative to traditional MBA courses or B schools, continues to coexist with Zeus, but the dates for the next cohort are not yet available. It’s not clear whether Stoa will run both verticals going forward. 

Incidentally, The Ken reported earlier this year that Stoa shut its MBA school operations as it failed to fill up the last cohort. Cofounder and CEO Kulkarni said at the time that the startup had only pressed pause on operations and was reevaluating its next steps.

“We will not accept any more students for the foreseeable future. Within 6–8 weeks, we will announce the next form factor that Stoa School will shape into,” he said at the time. No further updates have come since then. 

Riding The AI Boom

Founded in 2020 by Kulkarni, Raj Kunkolienkar, and Manoj Kambadur, Stoa has served over 1,500 students across 15 cohorts. 

It reported a revenue of INR 15.9 Cr in FY23, a 160.6% jump from INR 6.1 Cr in FY22. It also managed to narrow its loss by 43.8% to INR 43.9 Lakh from INR 78.2 Lakh in FY22. It’s not clear how Stoa performed in FY24 as the startup is yet to file its financials. 

Stoa’s pivot to an AI agent or chatbot is unsurprising given the current Gen AI boom. As enterprises and individuals adopt AI and machine learning tools to automate tasks, reduce human error and increase efficiency, a number of Indian startups are building AI-based products. These startups are also receiving a lot of interest from investors.

Stoa raised $1.5 Mn in seed funding in late 2021 and is backed by marquee investors such as Zerodha’s Nithin Kamath, CRED’s Kunal Shah, Udemy’s Gagan Biyani, Myntra’s Raveen Sastry, among others. 

Stoa competes against the likes of Masters’ Union, Invact Metaversity, Mesa School of Business, among others. Besides this, edtech unicorn PhysicsWallah has also entered the space with its Institute Of Innovation, which offers MBA-like courses. 

The post From MBA To GenAI: Stoa Makes Hard Pivot To Enterprise Agent ‘Zeus’ appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Healthtech startup Dozee laid off around 40-50 employees in a restructuring exercise last month in a bid to cut its losses, sources told Inc42.

The exercise impacted employees from on-field and customer success teams, sales team, and marketing team, the sources added.

The startup’s total employee count stood at about 250-270 before the layoff exercise, multiple sources said. 

“We were told that the layoffs had nothing to do with our performance. The restructuring was being done to cut losses,” one of the sources said. 

The impacted employees will receive severance packages based on their respective notice periods.

Responding to Inc42’s queries on the development, a Dozee spokesperson said there was no reduction in its manpower. However, the startup said that there was a reallocation of resources which affected a “very miniscule number” of its headcount.

“The figures you’ve referenced are entirely unfounded. As part of our growth strategy, we are reallocating resources with a greater focus on HealthAI, clinical research, and international business development. Reallocation of resources with evolving business needs is a natural part of the life cycle in the growth journey of any organisation. This has affected a very minuscule number of our total headcount,” the spokesperson said in a statement. 

A follow-up questionnaire seeking information about the exact number of affected employees didn’t elicit any response till the time of publishing this story.

Founded in 2015 by Mudit Dandwate and Gaurav Parchani, Dozee’s contactless patient monitoring system enables healthcare workers to remotely monitor the vital parameters of patients such as heart rate, respiration rate, blood pressure, and temperature. It also offers an early warning system that alerts doctors about clinical deterioration of a patient’s health.

The sources cited above attributed the layoffs to the startup’s failure to scale its revenue. “Despite having a presence across the country, the revenue growth is tepid and the loss has grown multifold,” said one of the sources.

This is also reflected in Dozee’s financial statements. While the startup is yet to file its statements for FY24, it reported a 33% decline in revenue to INR 2.1 Cr in FY23 from INR 3.1 Cr in FY22. Its loss zoomed 175% to INR 84.4 Cr from INR 30.6 Cr in FY22 due to growing employee expenditure and advertising expenses. 

While Dozee’s employee costs increased 5X to INR 54 Cr in FY23 from INR 17 Cr in the previous fiscal year, marketing expenditure doubled to INR 4 Cr from INR 1.8 Cr in FY22. Overall, total expenditure rose 160% to INR 87.8 Cr in FY23 from INR 33.8 Cr in FY22.

This means that the startup spent INR 41.1 to earn every INR 1 in operating revenue.

As Dozee has struggled to grow its business in India, the startup is now eyeing the US market, the sources said. 

“… We have also expanded our footprints in the USA, UAE and Africa. With our path-breaking innovation in AI-powered ballistocardiography, we are well on our way to become a global leader in HealthAI,” the Dozee spokesperson added in the statement sent to Inc42. 

Dozee last raised $6 Mn funding in Series A2 round from 3one4 Capital, Prime Venture Partners, YourNest VC, State Bank of India, among others, in April last year. 

The startup has raised close to $12 Mn in funding across multiple rounds till date. 

The post Exclusive: Prime Venture Partners Backed Dozee Lays Off Around 40 Employees appeared first on Inc42 Media.

The ecommerce sector has been at the forefront of the burgeoning Indian startup ecosystem. Pegged at $123 Bn currently, the ecommerce sector is expected to grow at a CAGR of 19% and become a $400 Bn opportunity by 2030. 

As a result, investors have been bullish on the country’s ecommerce sector for over a decade, betting big on the startups in the space. Ecommerce startups raised over $34 Bn funding between 2014 and the first half of 2024 via 1,833 deals, as per Inc42’s ‘The State of Indian Ecommerce H1 2024’ report.

This period saw 25 ecommerce startups, including Flipkart, boAt, Meesho, and Snapdeal, turn unicorns. These unicorns are cumulatively valued at over $89 Bn today.

Besides, the Indian ecommerce sector also has 18 soonicorns, including Drools, Country Delight, BlueStone, among others. The combined valuation of these startups exceeds $6 Bn.

Overall, there are over 5.1K ecommerce startups in India, of which over 940 are funded. These startups are looking to expand their businesses on the back of the growing number of Indians flocking to digital channels for their shopping needs. 

With the number of online shoppers in the country expected to cross the 500 Mn mark by 2030, these startups see enough potential to shore up their revenues. However, what will be the cost of this additional revenue and will these startups be able to create profitable business models? We don’t have the exact answer to this question, but the past trends give some indications about the future.

Ecommerce Unicorns Earned $7 Bn At An Expense Of $7.9 Bn

Indian ecommerce unicorns recorded over $7 Bn in aggregate revenue in the financial year 2022- 23 (FY23). This translated to a CAGR of 75% from the $1.3 Bn revenue they earned in FY20, a year before onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

It needs to be highlighted that the pandemic turned out to be a boon for the ecommerce sector as amid the stay-at-home mandates across the world, millions of new users took to online shopping. 

Besides the convenience of getting orders delivered at doorstep, the option to choose from 1,000+ brands with a single click and the discounts offered by ecommerce platforms led to a surge in the number of customers. All of these resulted in the increase in revenues of ecommerce players.

For instance, India’s most valued startup, Flipkart saw its operating revenue jump by 46% year-on-year (YoY) to $1.9 Bn in FY23, whereas B2B ecommerce unicorn OfBusiness’ operating revenue zoomed 80% to $1.4 Bn during the year. 

However, the expenses of these startups also jumped in line with the rise in their revenues. The ecommerce unicorns’ cumulative total expenditure stood at $7.9 Bn in FY23.

Advertising Expenses, Employee Costs Jump 

The rise in the expenditure was largely led by increase in advertising and employee costs of these unicorns. 

Employee Benefit Expenses: As the demand for their services increased, the ecommerce unicorns went on an aggressive hiring spree. They spent over $1 Bn on employee costs in FY23, translating into a 30% CAGR increase from $481 Mn in FY20. 

For the uninitiated, employee benefit expenses include employee salaries, ESOP expenses, PF contribution, gratuity, among others. In FY23, Flipkart’s employee expenses rose 18% to $553 Mn from $467 Mn in FY22.

Advertising Expenses: Ecommerce startups have to spend a hefty amount of capital to showcase their products and offer to customers and compete against their competitors.

As per the Inc42 report, the country’s ecommerce unicorns collectively spent $669 Mn in FY23 on advertisements. Walmart-owned Flipkart spent the highest amount on advertising at $301 Mn in FY23, an increase of 24% from $243 Mn in FY22. 

Signs Of Profitability?

Despite the rise in expenses, the ecommerce unicorns managed to cut down their losses in FY23.

The onset of funding winter in 2022 forced startups across sectors, including ecommerce, to cut down their expenses as it became difficult to get funds for loss-making entities. Sustainable and profitable business models became the talk of the town as startups felt the chills of the funding winter.

As a result, startups resorted to cost-cutting measures like reducing advertising and marketing spends, laying off employees, and enforcing salary cuts to reduce their losses or turn profitable. This was reflected in the bottom lines of the ecommerce unicorns for FY23. Their cumulative net loss declined 23% to $994 Mn in FY23 from $1.2 Bn in FY22. 

Flipkart saw its loss drop 10% to $493 Mn from $545 Mn in FY22. SoftBank-backed Meesho also managed to halve its loss to $209 Mn in FY23 from $406 Mn in the previous fiscal year. 

Edited By Vinay Kumar Rai

The post Indian Ecommerce Unicorns Spent $7.9 Bn To Earn $7 Bn In FY23 appeared first on Inc42 Media.

One of the more curious things about Indian startups is the lack of information about the key people leading the operations behind big-name founders and CEOs. Take OYO and Ritesh Agarwal, for instance.

Everyone knows the hospitality unicorn is led by founder and CEO Agarwal, but the senior leadership behind has an average tenure of eight years in the company as against Agarwal’s tenure of 11 years. With everything that’s going on at OYO — from a temporary hiatus in its IPO plans, to a critical fundraise, to its first profitable fiscal year, and yet another overseas acquisition — it’s only right to take a peek behind the curtain and see who’s leading the turnaround at OYO.

Some interesting insights about people at power in OYO:

• Seven of the 14 people — of the top brass at OYO are IIT graduates, with three getting their degrees from IIT Kharagpur
• Five CXOs worked with McKinsey & Co before joining OYO
  

But it would be best to set the context of how OYO turned it around before we look at the people driving this change. 

OYO’s net profit for FY24 stood at INR 229.57 Cr in stark contrast to a net loss of INR 1,286.51 Cr in FY23.  As we reported in July 2024, the hospitality startup’s turnaround recipe was built on these key pillars:

• Business Model Tweaks: The startup ditched its minimum guarantee price model and instead adopted a revenue sharing model after the pandemic, which immediately reduced costs. The company also culled its low quality hotels and those that were not seeing traction. In FY23, the hotel count decreased from 12,000 to 8,000, according to sources we spoke to
• Move Towards Premiumisation: Premium category is driving revenue growth for OYO as the startup zeroed in on key properties and improved their visibility, while also launching new brands. The branded and organised hotel segment in India is seeing decade-high numbers, which OYO is cashing in on. In April 2024, OYO launched the luxury hotel chain brand ‘Sunday’ in a JV with SoftBank, targeting Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities, and at the same time, expanded the OYO Palette chain of premium hotels and resorts
• Tapping New Categories, Customers: While spiritual tourism and sports tourism raked in revenue for OYO in FY24, another big change has been its move to attract first-generation hotel owners, who do not have the traditional baggage and are also positioning themselves in the premium categories for hospitality, just like OYO wants to
• Capturing Market Share Overseas: Like in India, OYO removed hotels from its overseas inventory as well as its overseas presence. From 80 geographies in 2021, the company is currently present in 35 today. It is doubling down on the revenue generating geographies like UK and US, while scaling back in China. It’s also acquiring companies — like Paris-based Checkmyguest for $27.4 Mn — to shore up relatively weaker markets like Western Europe

And now to the people who have brought about this change.

OYO’S Hidden Secret: Leadership Retention 

Like any other startup, OYO too has faced an attrition of some CXOs in the past two years. First, there was the great resignation in the pandemic years, and then came a number of strategic changes in OYO which required new leaders to take over. 

However, one thing is amply clear — CEO Agarwal has managed to retain a core group of function heads for several years, which creates a wealth of institutional knowledge that can be super critical for companies to survive tough times and transitions. 

OYO did resort to cost-cutting and laid off hundreds of employees in late 2022, but the top brass remained in place to help the company tide over challenges.

There have been reshuffles undoubtedly — chief marketing officer and former India CEO Rohit Kapoor and former head of European business Mandar Vaidya are two examples — but a bulk of the top management comprises long-time OYO executives. 

Other key exits in recent months include Ankit Gupta, the CEO of India operations who quit last year and former CFO Abhishek Gupta who moved to an advisory role in 2024.

While the CMO position is still vacant, Gautam Swaroop took over the reins from Vaidya in 2023, and was elevated to CEO of the international business. Swaroop has been with OYO since 2019.

His elevation has worked in terms of business performance. OYO only saw a marginal 1.3% YoY decline in FY24 revenue, but this would have been significantly worse had it not been for the international business. 

Revenue from outside India grew 2.5% from INR 4,081 Cr to INR 4,185 Cr in the fiscal year, while the India revenue shrank by 12%. 

Another vital role is that of chief financial officer (CFO) Rakesh Kumar, who was elevated to the position in December 2023. 

While Agarwal is leading talks with investors regarding a $100 Mn fund infusion in recent months, sources indicate that Ankit Tandon has been doing most of the groundwork, and the CFO is also instrumental in securing the right terms for the $450 Mn debt refinancing. 

The latter is critical for OYO to make another bid for an IPO.

With the post-pandemic and strategic restructuring completed in the past year, CEO Agarwal seems to have assembled a 14-member leadership team that can take the company to an IPO and beyond.

Once the debt refinancing is settled, Agarwal and co will look to capitalise on the momentum set in the past year.

The IPO is undoubtedly a big motivation for the team leading OYO. The company’s ESOP pool is worth over $1 Bn and covers over 80% of the employees.  A successful outcome in the IPO would not only be a great payoff for OYO’s biggest investor SoftBank, but a massive wealth creation opportunity for its employees. 

Edited by Nikhil Subramaniam

The post The OYO Top Brass: The People Behind Founder & CEO Ritesh Agarwal appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Delhi-NCR based logistics tech unicorn Shiprocket is piloting a D2C marketplace Zop, Inc42 has learnt. The pilot started a few weeks ago and hosts around 200-300 brands across eight categories including fashion, beauty, electronics, among others. 

Saahil Goel, cofounder, managing director and CEO of Shiprocket, claimed Zop will generate more demand for these D2C brands and help them with discovery. “D2C brands which are having trouble in generating demand or are unable to get much online exposure on their own should try Zop,” Goel told Inc42. 

At the moment, Zop is charging a sales commission from brands for listing their products.

Shiprocket’s Zop Vs Other Marketplaces

Without revealing any details, Goel said that Shiprocket and Zop will be running several experiments in terms of generating demand for D2C brands. Zop is currently targeting smaller brands that are struggling with advertising costs and are at the mercy of Meta’s advertising cost per mille (CPM) or cost per thousand impressions.

“Zop will help brands with discovery, advertisement and also will help them generate traffic outside the purview of Meta and Google,” he added.

With the launch of Zop, Shiprocket would be competing against the likes of Meesho, Amazon, Flipkart, JioMart and others in the marketplace segment. 

The CEO said it is too early to comment on the topline that Zop can generate, but said it would have a distinctive edge over Flipkart and Amazon since Zop is completely focused on helping Indian homegrown D2C brands get discovered. 

Founded in 2017 by Goel, Vishesh Khurana, Akshay Gulati and Gautam Kapoor, Shiprocket is an aggregator of third-party logistics companies and offers several ecommerce services, including digital marketing, analytics and WhatsApp commerce. 

While 80% of the startup revenue still comes from shipping, in the past 18-24 months it has added services such as payments, marketing, exports and more.

In the last two years, Shiprocket acquired five companies Glaucus Supply Chain Solutions, Wigzo, Pickrr, Omuni, and Rocketbox and is likely to acquire more in the coming months, Goel said.  

“We started our journey with shipping, and did that for five years. Now in the past two years we have been working on products related to payments, conversion, checkout, lending, and exporting,” he said, adding that one of the last areas that the company wanted to focus on was generating demand.

Will Zop Join Quick Commerce Bandwagon?

Quick commerce has become the biggest disruption to marketplaces such as Amazon and Flipkart. The likes of Blinkit, Zepto, and Swiggy Instamart have made inroads into what used to be marketplace territory with their dark store models. It remains to be seen how Zop will compete in this evolving market. 

The situation is such that in 2024, several D2C brands are moving to quick commerce-first strategy and shrinking their focus from marketplaces, as we wrote in our coverage on Flipkart Minutes. 

While Zop is in a pilot stage, the launch time is peculiar. Shiprocket rolled out a WhatsApp storefront bot and is also launching a quick shipping service for small businesses and direct sellers. These indicate that Shiprocket wants to also build ecommerce SaaS for smaller businesses, so the addition of the marketplace is definitely a more capital-intensive play. 

Besides this, the company recently launched Shiprocket Quick across Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Pune for same-day deliveries. 

Shiprocket, which is eyeing a public offering next year, is in the midst of raising around $120 Mn, as per reports. 

Tribe Capital, along with other investors, is in talks to invest more in the company at a valuation of $1 Bn – $1.1 Bn, which would be a flat round. To date the startup has raised over $350 Mn in funding and counts investors such as Moore Strategic Partners, Zomato, PayPal, McKinsey, among others. 

The post Exclusive: Logistics Unicorn Shiprocket Pilots D2C Marketplace Zop appeared first on Inc42 Media.