Indian on-demand services startup gets $1.6M seed funding to make urban living easier

Goodservice, a Delhi-based concierge app, raised US$1.6 million in seed funding from Sequoia Capital, the company announced today.

Founded in 2014, Goodservice offers on-demand services to users through chat. The app acts as a personal secretary and assists in finding services that range from electricians and plumbers to booking movie tickets and getting doctor’s appointments.

The core idea of making urban Indian living easier has led the startup to cater to requests worth over Rs.3 million (US$47,166) a day. Vipul Aggarwal, Goodservice co-founder, said in a statement: “All the customer has to do is type in a request and we get them the cheapest quote, make the booking, do follow-ups and ensure the job is done well.”

On-demand services apps are on the rise because of the level of convenience they bring to the busy urban Indian. TimeSaverz is another such app that provides on-demand home services. Working from the angle of a personal assistant, Goodservice has managed to create a reliable approach for users to run their daily errands through their phone. The highly fragmented local service market has produced a conducive environment for such startups to grow and create competition in the industry.

Currently functioning in Delhi and National Capital Region, Goodservice plans to extend its offering to the rest of the country. The funding will be used to invest in technology and expand its scale of operations. “Backing from Sequoia will be important in helping us expand operations with a target of Rs.10 million (US$157,220) per day worth of requests for services and products,” Aggarwal added.

Goodservice has grown to a team of over 40 in the span of a year. Going ahead, it also plans to launch an iOS app.