Matrix Partners joins $21m round in Indian social commerce startup DealShare

DealShare, a social commerce startup based in India, has raised US$21 million in a series C funding led by WestBridge Capital.

Alpha Wave Incubation, a venture fund managed by Falcon Edge Capital and Z3Partners, also joined the round. Existing investors Matrix Partners India and Omidyar Network India participated as well, along with several angel investors.

(From left to right) Rajat-Shikhar founder & CPO, Sankar Bora founder & COO, Sourjyendu Medda, founder & chief finance and business officer, and Vineet Rao, founder & CEO of DealShare / Source: DealShare

The latest investment brings the total funding raised by DealShare to US$34 million in the last two years, according to a company statement.

DealShare started out in 2018 as an ecommerce platform on WhatsApp and eventually launched its own app and website. The company said it has seen an increase in demand amid Covid-19 as people are shifting to online shopping.

With the fresh funds, DealShare plans to enter new markets and strengthen its existing ones. It will also scale operations, expand local sourcing networks, and develop its technology platform.

By 2021, the firm aims to expand to 100 cities and towns across five states in India as well as increase its customer base to 10 million, said DealShare founder and CEO Sourjyendu Medda. He claims that the latest investment will take the company to an annual gross merchandise value of 25 billion rupee (US$339.8 million).

The startup says it’s already clocking revenues of US$45 million, with US$7 million worth of capital invested.

With about 25,000 orders on a daily basis, DealShare has partnered with 1,000 brands, 70% of which are local and regional brands. The company is looking to add over 5,000 homegrown brands to its portfolio by next year.

DealShare rivals in the social commerce space include Meesho, which is backed by Facebook, Sequoia Capital, SAIF Partners, and Y Combinator, and Bulbul, which raised US$8.7 million in a round led by Info Edge earlier this year.

Currency converted from Indian rupee to US dollar: US$1 = 73.56 rupees.