Arpan Banerjee

Who else is ordering dinner from Zomato tonight? We sure are. Zomato had a stellar Q4FY24! Here at Needl.ai, we're excited to delve into the details: 1. Adjusted Revenue: Zomato's revenue soared to INR 3,873 crore, up 61% year-on-year. 2. Adjusted EBITDA: Their EBITDA reached INR 194 crore, marking an impressive INR 369 crore improvement from last year! Curious about how Zomato or other market leaders are performing? Don’t miss out on actionable insights that could drive your decisions. Contact us to learn more : https://lnkd.in/g9msR_-N #Zomato #Growth #FinancialHealth #Innovation #Sustainability #Needlai #MarketInsights #FinancialAnalysis #AIAnalytics #QuarterlyReports #StockMarket #AIsummarization #FY24Q4

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[MMT Appreciation Post] - MakeMyTrip’s Acquisition of Happay from Cred – My Take Cred saw travel as a natural extension of its business (overlapping customer segments) and acquired Happay to expand its offerings. Worth noting, Happay’s largest shareholder at the time was Sequoia (32%), which also backs Cred. Sequoia’s first investment in Happay dates back to 2015, so the 2021 acquisition likely had multiple layers at play. Happay didnt succeed in vertically integrating expense and travel management (TMC). Instead, they became a go-to expense solution partner for many TMCs. Here’s where things got interesting: Travel and expense management is all about 1) inventory 2) operational intensity 3) low margins. Points 2 and 3 didn’t align with Cred’s DNA—personal lending operates at a juicy 30%+ gross margin, while travel management hovers around 6–8%. and they strength was more prod + brand and not hardcore ops (aka swiggy/zomato). Meanwhile, MakeMyTrip was quietly strengthening its enterprise game. They acquired Quest2Travel during the pandemic (talk about timing!) and also re-wrapped their B2C product as MyBiz for solopreneurs, CAs, SMEs. The missing link for enterprise customers? Expense management. Happay acquisition—brilliantly filling that gap. Those who know me know how much respect I have for MMT as a brand. Integrating acquisitions isn’t easy, yet they’ve successfully managed Goibibo, RedBus, Quest2Travel, Savaari, and now Happay. It’s also no secret that MMT has been lucky—no one in India has truly challenged them (Yatra or Cleartrip could’ve really given them a run for their money, or oyo could have nailed alternate acco). But guess, luck is hard work translated to glory :) the quality of MMT's execution is immense and no wonder they will nail this too. Personally, as an outsider, I’ve always had incredible support from MMT folks whenever I’ve had industry questions. They’re not just big—they’re big-hearted too. Watching them build a travel behemoth is inspiring to say the least! If you’re thinking long-term investments, I’d buy their stock in a heartbeat (and no, Pickyourtrail isn’t raising right now, in case you’re wondering ;P) PS: completely personal take, no affiliations to employer or investors. congrats Bhavin Modi 🇮🇳 more power to you and the team! Pickyourtrail

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Execution > Being First 🚀 Swiggy wasn’t the first to start food delivery in India. Remember Foodpanda? They were early in the game 🍱 but couldn’t sustain. Yet Swiggy went on to dominate the market and now has a successful IPO 💼📈 What’s the takeaway? It’s not just about having the idea first 💡. It’s about executing it better, understanding the market, and evolving with customer needs 👥 Being first is great, but nailing execution and adapting to the market is what truly drives success ✅ What are your thoughts on this? . . . . . #startup #sales #entrepreneurship #swiggy

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Congratulations to Rapido on joining India's unicorn club with a valuation of $1.1 billion! This significant funding round led by WestBridge Capital is a testament to the company's innovative approach to ride-sharing and its potential for growth. LinkedIn News India The decision to expand offerings in the four-wheeler segment and boost operations across India is a strategic move that can help Rapido tap into new markets and increase its customer base. Scaling its technology platform will also enable the company to improve its services and stay competitive in the market. It's worth noting that Rapido's success is not just a win for the company, but also for the Indian startup ecosystem as a whole. The fact that the company has raised $200 million in funding, with $120 million coming from WestBridge Capital in a previous round, demonstrates the growing confidence of investors in Indian startups. As the ride-sharing market continues to evolve, it will be interesting to see how Rapido leverages this funding to drive growth and innovation. With its strong focus on technology and customer experience, Rapido is well-positioned to remain a leader in the Indian ride-sharing market.

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From Swiggy to Zomato to WazirX, Checkout what’s happening…Read on ➡️ Swiggy to sponsor Shark Tank Season 4, excludes Zomato founder Deepinder Goyal as part of deal ➡️ Paytm focusing on consumer payments business: CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma ➡️ Had to clear out senior Zomato executives who lost the drive post-IPO: Deepinder Goyal ➡️ TikTok's owner is scraping the web 25 times faster than OpenAI ➡️ Google can now lock your stolen Android smartphone automatically and protect personal data ➡️ Swiggy launches XL EV fleet for bulk orders ➡️ Nazara’s Openplay Gets Interim Relief From Calcutta HC In INR 845 Cr GST Notice Case ➡️ Relief For Ola: Karnataka HC Stays Order Declaring Drivers As Startup’s Employees ➡️ Honasa Vs Distributor: D2C Brand Says It Has No Assets In UAE ➡️ WazirX Video Deleted? Sources Say URL Changed, Video Not Taken Down ➡️ Sit Quiet": Bhavish Aggarwal As Kunal Kamra Flags Ola EV Issue ➡️ Zomato CEO slams malls; says, 'need to be 'more humane' towards delivery partners'

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MakeMyTrip to acquire Happay from CRED: Online travel company MakeMyTrip has signed a business transfer agreement to acquire Happay Expense Management Platform from CRED. Happay was acquired by CRED in late 2021 in a deal worth $180 million. Entrackr exclusively reported the acquisition at that time. Happay provides expense management for corporates to manage travel and tax benefits for their employees. The company offers specialized solutions for large businesses with multiple branches and surface logistics companies. Under the new agreement, the Happay brand, its expense management business, and its dedicated team will transition to MakeMyTrip. The transaction is expected to close within the next 90 days, subject to closing conditions. According to the press release, Happay’s team will continue to support the existing client base while working in close partnership with MakeMyTrip’s corporate travel services team. “The acquisition of Happay’s brand and expense management platform is a natural next step in our strategy to lead this space. By integrating Happay’s expertise, which spans over 900 corporate clients, MakeMyTrip is set to redefine the benchmarks once again in corporate travel and expense management in India,” said Rajesh Magow, co-founder and Group CEO, MakeMyTrip. Happay’s payments business and team, which has focused on developing an innovative technology stack and business payments products, will remain with CRED. Most recently, this vertical launched B2B payment solutions on Bharat Connect in partnership with NPCI. “Our focus at CRED is on developing products that enable financial progress. By enabling each vertical to play to its strengths, we’re positioning both teams - who’ve built market-leading products and capabilities - to scale in their domains. I’m excited about the payments team’s opportunity to transform the B2B payments experience into one that’s frictionless, reliable, and one that’s set for rapid growth,” said Kunal Shah, founder, CRED. MakeMyTrip claims to serve more than 59,000 corporate clients via MyBiz (a platform for small and medium-sized corporates) and more than 450 large corporates through Quest2Travel (a platform suited for large enterprises). MakeMyTrip, listed on the Nasdaq, reported a revenue of $211 million for the second quarter of this fiscal year, a 24.3% increase compared to the same quarter in the previous fiscal year. For the quarter ending September 30, 2024, the company posted a profit of $17.9 million, up from $2 million in the second quarter of fiscal year 2024. While details on the value of the deal are not available yet, the fact that CRED has retained the payments business indicates the strategic nature of the hive off.  But it seems safe to say that CRED will be taking a write off on the deal, with only the quantum to be figured out.  Nothing wrong in a change of plans, and with the frenetic… #MakeMyTrip #Happay #CRED

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🚀 Zepto’s 'Shagun Ka Lifafa' Campaign: A Game Changer This Raksha Bandhan! 🎉 Zepto has truly outdone itself this Raksha Bandhan with their "Shagun Ka Lifafa" campaign, setting new benchmarks and delighting customers across India. This isn’t just another festive campaign—it’s a masterstroke in modern marketing, with a cultural twist that resonates deeply. Here’s why this campaign stands out and how it crushed records with 1 Million OPD on a super Sunday, surpassing their previous milestone of 0.7 Million OPD on their Third Anniversary which they recently celebrated: 🌟 Cultural Connection Meets Modern Excitement: Zepto beautifully marries tradition with innovation. The age-old custom of Shagun Ka Lifafa is reimagined with a modern flair—scratch cards with every delivery that promises big wins like cars, Dubai trips, and more! 🎁. By the way, I received upto 30% off on Real Juices and Rs.500 off on EMT. 🌟 Everyone’s a Winner: Unlike typical promotions, Zepto ensures no one is left empty-handed. Every order gurantees a lifafa, and every lifafa guarantees a prize, which not only boosts customer satisfaction but also builds strong brand loyalty. 🏆 I just placed one order on Zepto today, just to check whats the craze about the Lifafa, and I just went ahead to have this post written. 🌟 Strategic Partnerships: Collaborations with brands like Dabur, Easemytrip, Ariel, and Tide elevate the campaign, offering diverse and desirable prizes that appeal to all demographics. This strategic move adds immense value to each order. 🤝 Haldirams, Snickers, Hershey, McCain and not to forget BSC - Bombay Shaving Company - Gaurav Anand are few of many participating brands. 🌟 Creative Brilliance by Chandan Mendiratta: The campaign carries the hallmark of Chandan Mendiratta’s genius, from the catchy rap ad that perfectly encapsulates sibling love and banter, to the overall conceptualization of the lifafa. It’s all Chandan—every bit of it! 🎨✨ It has Chandan written all over the campaign. 🌟 Record-Breaking Numbers: With an astonishing 1 Million Orders Per Day, Zepto not only surpassed their previous records but also demonstrated their operational excellence. This achievement sets a high bar for what’s possible in festive marketing! 📈💥 As we look ahead to the upcoming festive season, the calendar at Zepto must be buzzing with new ideas. I’m on the edge of my seat to see what they come up with next to break even more records! Kudos to the entire Zepto team, and especially to Chandan Mendiratta, for crafting a campaign that’s not just memorable but monumental. 👏 🌟 Don't forget to check the usual banter between a brother & sister on the front of the lifafa. "you have no friends because.. you're lame" is my favourite one. #Marketing #Branding #RakshaBandhan #Zepto #Innovation #CustomerDelight #RecordBreaking Aadit Palicha Devendra Meel Kaivalya V. Chandan Mendiratta

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🍴 Swiggy - IPO Breakdown 🍴 Swiggy, India’s leading hyperlocal logistics platform, has redefined urban convenience and set its sights on a transformative future. Here’s what you need to know: -Founded: 2014 by Sriharsha M., Nandan Reddy, and Rahul Jaimini -Pre-IPO Valuation: ₹95,234 crores, with backing from Prosus Ventures, Accel Partners, and SoftBank Investment Advisers -Core Model: Delivering convenience through food delivery, quick commerce (Instamart), dining-out solutions, and lifestyle events -Key Markets: Operating across 653 cities in India, with a stronghold in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities -Revenue Growth: ₹82,646M in FY23 to ₹112,474M in FY24 (+36%), driven by Instamart’s rapid growth Let’s explore how Swiggy is redefining urban living and shaping the future of India’s hyperlocal commerce ecosystem - https://lnkd.in/eEu5MMMF

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Today, we have built a Million Cases, Peeperly, OMGS and several other D2C brands, that collectively do over 100 thousand orders every month.   Last FY we crossed 100 Cr.+ in collective sales revenue (Bank revenue, not Shopify) that all while remaining bootstrapped and profitable. Along the way of building my business, I realized a few things that I would love to share with you. Here are 4 lessons I want to share after creating 7 successful D2C brands. Lesson 1: You don’t need a fancy MBA degree to scale a business. → I don’t have an MBA degree, nor have I attended a fancy college.  You can make a business as big or as small as you want. All you need is “speed” to scale it. Lesson 2: Keep it simple → Trust me, you can do great business without a high-end website, a large office, and IITians on your side. Start off with the limited resources and scale it from there. Lesson 3: Delegation Boosts Growth → You can’t make a BIG business without a team. Don’t try to do everything yourself, even if you think you can, you shouldn’t. Hire good talent, hold them accountable for results, and grow together. Don’t compromise great talent to save some bucks. That strategy almost never works. Lesson 4: Don’t Overlook sales → Business is Sales, Sales is Business. You need money to build a team, to invest in tools and resources, and for almost everything else that is required to be done to grow and thrive. So, track every step of your sales funnel such as website traffic, most viewed products, and checkout to cart abandonment rate. Make improvements accordingly. Always remember you can always make it 1% better. What’s your biggest learning from your entrepreneurial journey? PS: Loved the read? Share this in your network and follow me, Krishan Kumar for more content like this. #EntrepreneurialJourney #BusinessLessons #Zopoxo

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 #Zepto announced a $350 million #fundraise in its latest round that the quick commerce company said marks the largest 100% domestic fundraise within India's startup ecosystem. Click on the link below to know more... Zepto I Aadit Palicha I Kaivalya V. #Zeptofunding #capitalraise #retailfunding #retailindustry #retailgrowth #retailing #businessgrowth #Indianretailmarket #retailresults #retailindia #retailupdates #retailsectornews #businessnews  #retailbusiness #ir #IndiaRetailing

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Zepto to become an Indian company, gets Singapore’s approval for domicile transfer Zepto will be the third major quick commerce player to go public in India, following Zomato and Swiggy. Zepto, Aadit Palicha, CEO and co-founder, Zepto and Kaivalya V., CTO, Zepto Read Full Story:- https://lnkd.in/gzrpn2b2 #Zepto #QuickCommerce #IndianStartups #DomicileTransfer #MadeInIndia #StartupIndia #Zomato #Swiggy #IndianEconomy #TechNews #IPO #Ecommerce #BusinessGrowth #IndiaRising #StartupSuccess

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📈 Elevation Capital's report unveils some staggering statistics: 💰 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐮𝐞 𝐌𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞: The combined revenue of new-age brands tracked by Elevation Capital has already surpassed $5B/₹40,000 crore. 🚀 𝐁𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡: It is anticipated that 100+ new-age brands will each generate ₹500 Cr+ in annual revenue in the coming years. 💻 𝐎𝐧𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠: The report projects that online consumer spending in India will reach $300 billion by 2030. 📈 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬: Sectors such as 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞, 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬, 𝐟𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐬 are expected to see significant growth 🔍 Yesterday had the fortune of listening to Gurudev Prasad's insights which validated the same and highlighted ways to cope up with these trends: 🛍️ Consumers' lives are increasingly dominated by Indian brands particularly startups right from waking up to sleeping back from ordering food to cabs, from booking flights to hotels, everything is being done via their smartphones. This calls for understanding the consumer motivations better.    📈 High demands and rising expectations are shaping consumer behavior as they don't want to settle for anything but the best    🤝 Sharing becoming the new currency in brand-consumer relationships as everything is being shared on social media ⏰ Convenience is going to be the key as customers see value only through rising convenience   👥 Brands need to humanize more with founders' stories on the front as a way to connect with the consumers 🛠️ Sahil Gupta's Amazon-inspired methodology weaved it together through the 5 key questions which paves the way to build a sustainable brand:   1. 🎯 Who is the customer? 2. 💡 What is the pain point/problem? 3. 🛠️ What is the solution? 4. 🌟 How will the end-to-end CX look like? 5. 📊 What is the metric to measure the same?  Interested in knowing more about the brands of India? Starting an upcoming Brand Series for the same #BrandInsights #ConsumerBehavior #InnovationGoals #BrandswithNeha #IndianStartups 🌟

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Blinkit launches its own food delivery app!! While Zepto made a big announcement to launch a separate app for this 10 min food delivery business called #ZeptoCafe, it’s Delhi based competitor Blinkit quietly rolls out its own version by the name of Bistro! Personally, I think Zepto should have kept the 10 min delivery “cafe” inside the main app to leverage the 10 min delivery theme and continued to build on it. That would have enabled them to occupy and strengthen their positioning in consumer’s mind of a 10 min delivery service for everything from grocery to ecommerce and food. Hiving it off and having customers download another app may lead to giving customers another drop off point vulnerable to influence by competitors. The Blinkit hive off is actually more surprising considering they are already part of the Zomato family which is very much into the same food delivery business. If Zomato wanted to enter the 10 min food delivery model, doing it via the main food app would have been more logical than having it as a separate brand that too under Blinkit branding. Infact, Deepinder had announced his intentions to launch 10 min food delivery on Zomato - calling it Zomato Instant - way back in Mar'22. Clearly, things changed in last 3 years. Still,I would love to be a fly on the wall in Zomato’s board room to listen to the brainstorming behind this particular conversation. So clearly the #QuickCommerce wars are heating up. Players are doing new experiments - some may succeed, some will fail but interesting to see how this pans out. Edit 1 : Dheer Lalit Gupta had an observation in a WA chat around this post. As per GOI regulations, marketplaces are not allowed to have a stake in any seller on their platform. While the Govt has so far not looked at food delivery platforms for violation of this law, the concern about this law could potentially explain why both Zepto and Blinkit are running this on separate apps - which would be registered as separate entities outside the marketplace business. Edit 2 : Zepto and Blinkit aren’t marketplaces but storefronts as they purchase the stock from the OEMs. And private labels are still allowed on marketplaces like Zomato. Hence, marketplace restrictions don’t apply which means my original hypothesis still holds as valid. Thanks Bhavanshu Saini for your inputs.

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OYO Unlisted Shares: A Growth Story 🚀📈 OYO, one of India’s largest hospitality chains, has seen impressive growth over the past few years. Despite being unlisted, its valuation has soared, reflecting the company's strong market position and expansion efforts globally. 🔹 Valuation Surge: As of 2024, OYO's estimated valuation stands at approximately $9 billion, a significant jump from its previous valuations of around $5 billion in 2021. 🔹 Expansion: OYO continues to expand its footprint in key international markets, adding thousands of rooms to its portfolio each year. In 2023 alone, it onboarded 20,000+ new properties. 🔹 Financial Resilience: OYO recently reported a revenue of ₹4,000+ crore for FY2023, with a clear trajectory toward profitability. For investors, OYO’s unlisted shares represent a growing opportunity, backed by strong fundamentals and market demand. 🌍💡 Latest Updates: https://lnkd.in/g-qVRR4X #OYO #InvestmentOpportunities #UnlistedShares #Growth #Hospitality #Finance

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