5 rising startups in India

Photo credit: Martin Fisch

An online platform connecting brands to India’s ubiquitous mom-and-pop grocery stores found funding today. A deals discovery app secured rare early-stage investment from Singapore-based GIC. And a regional social network that hopes to bring Hindi speakers online also had a good day.

Here are five startups that made it on our list today.

Just Buy Live

Just Buy Live, an e-distributor that connects brands to local retailers, has raised US$20 million in a series A round from Alpha Capital Advisors, the company said today while announcing its official launch.

The mobile app-based startup is a distributor for over 1,000 brands and 300,000 products. It supplies goods directly from a brand to a retailer.

Just Buy Live aims to empower Indian retailers – from the local betel leaf seller to grocery stories to tea stall owners to supermarkets. It operates across 15 cities and aims to expand to 500 by the end of 2016.

The company was founded in February last year by Sahil Sani and Bharat Balachandran. “Just Buy is primarily about sound unit economics where every transaction is profitable and customer acquisition and retention is cost efficient,” Sahil said in a statement.

Alpha Capital Advisors is a Mumbai-based niche private equity investment management firm.

Little

Singapore-based GIC has invested an undisclosed amount in Little, a deals discovery app, The Economic Times reported today.

“Given the current climate where everyone is talking about funding tightening up, it’s great to have an investor who has a long-term view,” said Manish Chopra, founder of Little. The startup charges a commission on every transaction carried out through it.

The company was founded by Manish and Satish Mani, both of whom co-founded online fashion brand Zovi. It is used in 11 cities with over 5,000 merchants on board. It has 700,000 registered users, of whom 70 percent have actually carried out transactions.

Little raised US$50 million from Paytm, Tiger Global Management, and SAIF Partners in July last year.

ShabdaNagari

ShabdaNagari, a social networking portal in Hindi, has secured INR 12 million (US$1.7 million) in angel investment from Kanpur Angels and other investors, The Economic Times reported today.

The money will be used to expand genres on the site and upgrade the user interface. “With ShabdaNagari, we want to bring Hindi speakers online where they can connect with likeminded people and express their thoughts in their language,” co-founder Kalpnesh Gupta explained.

Gajty

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