Zepto, a quick delivery startup, has achieved a new milestone this year. The company raised $200m at a valuation of $1.4bn in the recent funding round. It is good news for the new startup in the delivery sector. Modern India is becoming a service-provider economy where e-commerce and other product manufacturing sectors depend on delivery services like Zepto.
Positive progress of such quick delivery startups showcases the Indian consumer mindset where people are more comfortable getting their product delivered at home instead of going to the mall or nearby shop.
In future development, Zepto plans to scale its operation with modern technology, more delivery partners, and system integration. Due to the consistency in offering high-quality services to their consumers, Zepto has gained a good reputation in the market.
It is giving tough competition to established players such as Flipkart and Amazon in quick delivery services. The status of becoming a unicorn in the sector will add credibility to the company.
It may push their growth further and make them one of India’s reliable and growth-oriented quick delivery service stars.
US-based asset management firm StepStone Group led the new funding. Also, Goodwater Capital and existing investors have added more funds. Last year, in May 2022, the Zepto was valued at $900m. The next milestone came quickly and helped Zepto to achieve its ambitious goal of becoming a unicorn startup in India.
After the fundraising round ended, Zepto announced on its official website that the new funding came when the capital market faced the deepest downturn in a decade. The achievements become more critical because the investors pull their funds from the market, worsening the situation for the growing startup ecosystem.
The upgraded valuation will create a positive environment in the company. Fresh funds will further enhance the technology and user experience and support the partners in getting more value for their hard work.
In the last five years, the Indian startup culture has fallen. The number of unicorns in India has been significantly dropping. Reaching the status of Unicorn is more challenging when the investors need clarification about the startup culture in India.
Zepto’s achievement will open new doorways for other companies and create an ambition for the new startup. Zepto became the first startup valued at over $1bn in India this year, which is commendable for the team at Zepto.
A prosperous Indian startup that achieved the status was Molbio Diagnostics in September 2022. The year 2021 was great for the Indian startup because India has seen rapid growth in foreign investment and adding unicorns almost every week.
About Zepto Delivery Services
Zepto offers a grocery delivery service for under 10 minutes to the consumer. The user can order online and get their groceries delivered to their location within a few minutes. It is solving the problem of grocery purchases in India, where the traditional market is still dominating the industry.
As the awareness of online groceries spreads in Urban cities, the growth rate of delivery service startups has significantly increased. People are more comfortable buying the necessary products, including groceries, online instead of walking to the nearby market to buy the essentials.
Zepto was founded by two 19-year-old enthusiastic entrepreneurs, Aadit Palicha and Kaivalya Vohra. Founder dropped out of Stanford University to start their own company in India.
Traditional values and culture move the Indian market. The biggest challenge in India is to change the habit of buying products through the local market. People spend hours visiting local stores, selecting their products, waiting in queues to make payments, and bringing heavy bags home. Breaking such a culture is a difficult task.
Zepto took this challenge in hand and came up with the brilliant idea of delivering groceries and essential products directly to the home within 10 minutes. Assurance of fast delivery is fulfilled with skilled delivery partners who are aware of the region.
Zepto’s ambition is backed by various capital investors firms such as Y Combinator, Glade Brook Capital, and Angel investors Lachy Groom and Neeraj Arora. The early funding helped Zepto to build a strong foundation for the company.
As more funds poured into the business, rapid expansion was possible. Today, Zepto has tied with various companies for their delivery services. Also, they are delivering the products purchased from their platform.
Zepto is trying to organize the sector with value-added services. We will see more new developments in the company after the fundraiser.
