In the year 2004, ebay had commenced operations in India by acquiring Bazee.com which was followed by the entry of Flipkart and Myntra in 2007. Since then people have been purchasing products online and the steroid to this business was the 'Cash On Delivery' mode as it increases and wins the trust of the customers easily and hence flourished their businesses excessively. Now, the greatest threat to these E-Commerce companies are the 'On-Demand' start-ups which have started flooding the market. The consumers in India are already well equipped with smart phones and have made it a medium for online shopping; building an advantage on this, the 'On-Demand' start ups have created and are fulfilling the demand of immediate delivery at the doorstep. These younger start ups are designed to cater to high frequency orders just within a few hours. They fully utilize the ability of the smartphones to trace the exact location of the consumers and have a very well organised and efficient logistics and also a well trained workforce ; which helps them to cater to the 'On-Demand' deliveries. The "On demand start ups" cater to those consumers who have no time for domestic chores and prefer being served.
Let us have a quick look at a few on-demand start ups in different segments.
Online Groceries, Vegetables & Household items.
1. Grofers- Everything delivered to you on demand!
Founded in 2014 by Saurabh Kumar and Albinder Singh, Grofers is a company which links the local merchants to the consumers , instead of swiping away their business. It is an mobile instant app where consumers can place an order for groceries and vegetables. It has its highest sales in Delhi and has expanded to 9 cities of India while it targets to cover the whole country soon. It has won the confidence of investors like Tiger Global and Sequoia Capital at a tender stage!
It stands out among all the other online grocery stores as it doesn't destroy the brick and mortar grocery stores but infact acts as a medium between them and their customers. Grofers deliver your product within 90 minutes of the order being placed. All you have to do is choose your product and any particular store which you prefer.
2. PepperTap- We make shopping easy!
Founded in November 2014 by Navneet Singh and Milind Sharma, PepperTap helps to deliver all kinds of products ranging from beauty and personal care, health care items, kitchen utilities and many more. It promises to deliver its product in less than 2 hours. Navneet Singh, Co-founder, PepperTap commented, "Our sole focus is to build the best grocery and fresh product-buying experience for our customers. Through our unique business model, we are able to provide delight for our customers, increase sales for our partner stores; and create a concrete and sustainable business for our shareholders.''
Presently it successfully covers Delhi NCR and Pune and plans to expand to Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru and other Tier-II cities. It has received funding from Sequoia Capital and SAIF Partners.
Online Restaurants.
1. Faasos. - ORDER ONLINE; SCREW THE QUEUE!
This company answers the question for "Aaj Khaane mein kya hai?". It was founded by Jaydeep Barman and Kallol Bannerjee in 2003 with its first service provided at Pune. Presently it operates in nearly 10 cities in the country and mainly sells 'Wraps' and 'Biryanis'. And guess what? It is the world's first restaurant to take orders online on a social networking website - Twitter.
It had raised its first round of funds in 2011 from Sequoia Capital. All that a consumer needs to do is place his order online choosing from the fixed menu they have consisting of Wraps, Curries and Biryanis and his order would be delivered within a couple of hours. It has many Outlets in Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, Vadodara,Indore, Chennai and Gurgaon. They have a good customer relationship through the different schemes which they launch like "Not Satisfied, Don't pay" ," Entrepreneur in residence" Program and many more.
2. Swiggy- Lightning fast deliveries!
It was founded in August 2014 by Sriharsha Majety, Rahul Jaimani and Nandan Reddy at Bengaluru. Swiggy aims to deliver food from the restaurant (which the customer chooses and also which has a tie-up with swiggy) to the customer. It is beneficial to the restaurants as Swiggy takes care of their deliveries while increasing their orders. It earns a commission on the order generated for the the restaurants. It had raised a $2 million in Series A funding from SAIF Partners and Accel Partners and is currently in talks with Norwest Venture Partners for Series B funding. From it's first outlet in Bengaluru, it has expanded to Hyderabad, Delhi, Gurgaon and Pune.
Handymen At Your Service!
1. TaskBob- Instant home services.
Founded in December 2014, by Aseem Khare, TaskBob aims to provide you the services of a handyman, Chauffeur, Cleaning and repair services at your doorstep.They have utilized technology in the right manner to reslove the problem of household services. the company has its services in Mumbai at various locations and aims to grow further to other cities too. They have received fundings of 7.2 crores from Orios Venture Partners in participation with Mayfield.
Gopal Modi, vice president of Orios Venture Partners, said TaskBob addresses a core pain point of the Indian household: “We see this as a very large addressable market of over 100 million households using TaskBob services at least 3 to 4 times a month.” Their main aim to be perfect in their current offers and deliver a quality service.It has a mission to create 'happy households'.
2. UrbanClap.-Right professionals for the right task.
UrbanClap was founded in October 2014 by Varun Khaitan, Abhiraj Bhal and Raghav Chandra, it helps the consumer meet the best local service providers for Personal care, Events and Weddings, Health and Fitness, House keeping and many more. Presently it has its services in Delhi, Bengaluru and Mumbai and plan to grow 10 times on every metric in the quarter. While the for the blue collared services such as that of electricians and plumbers you directly book and pay for them, but for the white collared services as that of yoga instructors or event planner you need to enter a few specifications which you need, which helps you find the exact professional you need. UrbanClap received a funding from Accel Partners, Saif Partners and the founders of Snapdeal Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal of $1.6 million in the April 2015.
The Taxi World.
1. Uber- Everyone's private driver.
UberCab was first launched in 2009 by Travis Kalanick and Garret Camp in America, gradually it was spread across the world and serves over 150 cities in the world. It was launched in India in September 2013. Uber acts as middlemen between the customer and the driver. It helps the customer find a suitable taxi near by while sitting at home and also giving them a choice of the cars. Uber utilizes the location services of a smartphone efficiently and takes utmost precautions regarding the safety issues of the passengers by the "SOS" button on its App. Uber carries out a cross verification of the driver and keeps a copy of their identity proof. Uber has received huge amount of investment, which thus helped them grow rapidly. Google Ventures had invested $258 million dollars in 2013, in January 2015 Uber raised $1.6 million in convertible debt from wealth management clients of Goldman Sachs. The cab arrives at your doorstep within 10 minutes from the time you confirm a booking.
2. OLA!- Say OLA to your driver.
The Spanish word OLA means a "wave". So say OLA to your driver on booking a cab. It was started in December 2010 by Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati initially in Mumbai and now is spread all over India. OlaCabs can be booked through their App or Website. They have car ranging from a basic one to the most luxurious one. You can book a cab instantly or reserve for sometime later. Ola has received many rounds of funding from Tiger Global Management ($5 million dollars), Matrix Partners and tiger Global ($20 million), Sequoia Capital ($41.5 million) and has raised $210 million dollars from Softbank. Ola has brought in Ola auto in a few cities and is planning to launch Ola Buses soon. In March 2015 Ola had bought TaxiForSure.
The "On Demand" start ups strive to fill in the time gap between placing an order and receiving the product/service.They need a lot of effort and planning done well in advance.The strength of these companies is built on their time management skills.There is no doubt that they need to be well equipped and friendly with the latest, fastest and the most efficient technology. Many venture capitalists fund such start ups as it seems to have a promising future because it points towards the changing lifestyle of the consumers. These companies have made life much easier and simpler. Today, while you work in your office, you do not have to worry about your household chores or what you would make for dinner after going home.They have taken care of all our "Home-Works".
The author is a CA final student and blogs at thewowstory.com
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