Udaan’s overhaul shrinks losses but grounds revenues

Trustroot Internet, the parent firm of India-based B2B ecommerce unicorn Udaan, posted flat revenue growth in the financial year ending March 2024 (FY 2024), according to its most recent set of audited financials.

During this period, revenue increased by just 1.8% to US$677 million from US$665 million in FY 2023.

Photo credit: Udaan

The increase may be small, but it is an improvement from the company’s 43% revenue drop between FY 2023 and FY 2022.

This uptick shows that Udaan is making “significant strides toward profitability, reducing EBITDA burn by 40% year on year,” Kiran Thadimarri, the company’s senior vice president for finance, said in a LinkedIn post.

Expenses also fell by 3%, which slashed the company’s net loss by 19% to US$199 million.

Tech in Asia sought comment from Udaan, but our queries remain unanswered.

Restructuring for sustainable growth

Founded in 2016, Udaan helps small manufacturers, farmers, and brands to market and sell their products to businesses across India. The company has a network of over 3 million registered retailers and 25,000 sellers across 900 cities in the country.

Udaan, which means “flying” in Hindi, expanded aggressively across various categories, but it has since adopted a more measured approach to achieve profitability.

See also: Ula, Udaan’s struggles cast shadow on B2B ecommerce’s future

As part of its cost-cutting measures in 2023, the company sought to streamline its operations by consolidating its essentials (fast-moving consumer goods, staples, and pharma) and discretionary (general merchandise, lifestyle, and electronics) units.

According to Thadimarri’s LinkedIn post, Udaan’s “solid operational performance” in FY 2024 was thanks to this “strategic business reorganization” and “disciplined cost optimization initiatives.”

He also shared that the company is on track to profitability as of early November, with an “impressive 60% revenue growth.”

This is notable as Udaan’s counterparts in Southeast Asia, such as Indonesia-based Ula, had to shift their B2B ecommerce models toward a software-driven, asset-light approach with an emphasis on logistics.

A leaner team

Going public?