ShopKirana (DIRECT) raised $38Mn (285 Crore~) led by Sixth Sense Ventures, Oman India, Info Edge.

Business-to-business FMCG startup Shopkirana said it has raised $38 million from Sixth Sense Ventures, Oman India joint investment fund, Info Edge and other investors.

The round was led by Info Edge, Oman India Joint Investment Fund and Sixth Sense Ventures. Trifecta, Incubate Fund, Akatsuki, Ajanta LLP, Gunosy Capital, 9Unicorns also participated in the round.

ShopKirana, now known as Direct, works directly with brands and helps them with distribution network and market intelligence. With direct platform, the kirana stores can discover, order, get delivery and make payments for all the brands in one place.

The raised capital will be used to expand the business to all major Tier-II cities of India. It works with 50,000 kirana stores in eight cities in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat, but the company aims to add a new city every 15 days this year and grow its presence across 30 cities by this year end, said Sumit Ghorawat, who co-founded ShopKirana.

The company was founded by former executives from the consumer goods sector -- Deepak Dhanotiya, Sumit Ghorawat, and Tanutejas Saraswat . Shopkirana is the first company in the sector to break even operationally.

Tanutejas Saraswat, founder of ShopKirana says: " We have a solid and tested playbook and plan to launch a new city every 15 days this year."

Sumit Ghorawat, founder of ShopKirana says: "We are building India's biggest go-to-market platform for FMCG brands. With the right product market fit and considering the heavy adoption from kirana stores, legacy FMCG brands and D2C brands - we are super excited to take the business to national scale.

Deepak Kumar Dhanotiya, founder of ShopKirana says: " We are building next generation digital and democratic ecosystem for FMCG brands"

"The Shopkirana team has been very impressive in their rapid scale up and capital efficiency. Their deep understanding of the business has made them the partner of choice for many reputed FMCG brands. Kirana stores are the backbone of India and it is more important than ever to empower them with just-in-time sourcing that frees up working capital and increases product availability to enable them to service their customers better and compete with e-tailers." Sanjeev Bikchandani, Founder & Executive Vice Chairman of Info Edge

“ShopKirana possesses the key tenets for a successful company. Large addressable market – $500 bn market poised for disruption, highly motivated promoters, capital-efficient business model and a great product market fit – serving the need of kirana shop owners and their suppliers (FMCG brands and others) thus laying a strong foundation for a long term competitive edge. OIJIF is very excited to partner with ShopKirana in this journey as we work on growing the company together.” Srinath Srinivasan, CEO at Oman India Joint Investment Fund Management Company.

Nikhil Vora, Founder & CEO Sixth Sense Ventures stated, “We are big believers in consumer disruption led by distribution changeover. Shop Kirana is our window into that opportunity. Super thrilled to be able to partner the super trio Sumit, Deepak and Tanutejas in their mission to change the way, 11mn small kiranas operate and get serviced in India. We like the expertise of the founders who come with deep and relevant consumer experience, having led supply chain and GTM functions at leading FMCG brands. Interestingly, its also ensured that ShopKirana becomes the most capital efficient player in the market with a revenue run rate of ~ Rs800crs. Look forward to being part of this rocketship…ShopKirana”.

ShopKirana will use the fund to scale across tier 2 cities & invest in solid technology backend which is giving data insights to brands. ShopKirana will invest in human capital to be ready for national scale.