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The newest unicorn in India is a startup that is helping construction and real estate companies in the world’s second-most populated nation procure materials and handle logistics for their projects.
Four-year-old Infra.Market said on Thursday it has raised $100 million in a Series C round led by Tiger Global. Existing investors, including Foundamental, Accel Partners, Nexus Venture Partners, Evolvence India Fund and Sistema Asia Fund also participated in the round, which valued the Indian startup at $1 billion.
The new round, which brings Infra.Market’s total to-date raise to about $150 million, comes just two months after the Mumbai-headquartered startup concluded its Series B round. The startup was valued at about $200 million post-money in the December round, according to reports. Avendus Capital advised Infra.Market on the new transaction.
Infra.Market helps small businesses such as manufacturers of paints and cements improve the quality of their production and meet various compliances. The startup adds its load cells to the manufacturing facilities of these small businesses to ensure there is no lapse in quality, and also helps them work with other businesses that can provide them with better raw material and provide guidance on pricing. It also works closely with businesses to ensure that their deliveries are made on time.
These improvements, explained co-founder Souvik Sengupta, help small manufacturers land larger clients that have higher expectations from the businesses with which they engage. He said the startup has helped small manufacturers reach customers outside of India as well. Some of its clients are in Bangladesh, Malaysia, Singapore and Dubai.
“We are bringing a service layer to these small manufacturers, enabling them to grow their business. We don’t own the asset and are creating private label brands,” he said in an interview in December 2020.
Infra.Market works with more than 170 small manufacturers and counts the vast majority of major construction and real estate companies, such as giants Larsen & Toubro, Tata Projects and Ashoka Buildcon, as its clients. Sengupta said the startup sells to more than 400 large clients and 3,000 small retailers.
Sengupta said in December last year that the startup was on track to hit the ARR (annual recurring revenue) of $100 million before the pandemic hit early last year. This nearly cut the startup’s business in half for at least two early months of the pandemic. But the startup has picked up pace again, and is now on track to hit the ARR of $180 million. The startup aims to grow this figure to $300 million by March 2021.
“We are delighted to partner with Souvik and Aaditya in the growth journey of Infra.Market which is reshaping India’s construction materials supply chain. With pioneering technology innovation and the ability to stitch together private label brands, Infra.Market is positioned for strong growth, healthy economics and profitability,” said Scott Shleifer, partner of Tiger Global Management, in a statement.
Sengupta added: “We are seeing rapid acceleration in demand as infrastructure and real-estate companies are looking to shift their procurement to get consistent quality and minimize delays.”
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