India’s not so organized retail sector, estimated to be $792 Billion, is set for the next wave of growth. Bengaluru-based social commerce unicorn Meesho has now raised $570 Million led by Fidelity Management and B Capital Group. Other new investors include Footpath Ventures, Trifecta Capital, Good Capital, among others. Existing investors Prosus Ventures, SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and Facebook also participated in this round.
Following the round, the company’s valuation has more than doubled to $4.9 Billion in less than five months since it became the first ever social commerce unicorn in April 2021 at a 2.1 Billion valuation.
In a statement, the startup said that it aims to reach 100 Mn monthly transacting users by December 2022 and thus, the funds will be used to grow its technology and product talent by 2.5x and increase its roster to 50+ Mn products. The platform is also looking to expand its groceries and FMCG offerings with Farmiso (Meesho Grocery), its community group-buying business to 200+ cities.
Founded by IIT-Delhi graduates Vidit Aatrey and Sanjeev Barnwal in 2015, Meesho claims to have over 13 Mn individual entrepreneurs on its platform and is catering to 45 Mn customers. To date, Meesho has delivered orders from more than 100K registered suppliers to over 26K pin codes across 4,800 cities, generating over INR 500 Cr ($68 Mn at current conversion rate) in income for individual entrepreneurs.
