2014 In Review: A Look At Startups That Shut Shop This Year

It’s time to bid adieu to 2014. If we look back, the Indian startup ecosystem has witnessed a lot of action in the last few years. Sites like Flipkart, Bookmyshow and MakeMyTrip have become household names. However, the passing year has not been lucky for all. Many have succeeded but the number is nowhere close to the number of businesses that have failed. Let’s take a look at some of the well known startups that have shut shop and moved on.

Bearshop

The price comparison site BearShop.in was launched in 2012 by Puneet Sharma, Ankur Jai Kumar and Praveer Bhatt. The company use to track product price changes at major online retailers in order for consumers to get lowest prices on LCD TVs, cameras, gadgets, video games, etc.

In February, 2014 the company decided to shutdown the operations due to an undisclosed reason. However, they have launched a new service called Bugclipper which allows the enterprises to capture screenshots, highlight issues and record screen activity, all with one tap.

Bluegape 

The Delhi-based fan merchandise & customisation platform Bluegape.com was founded by Sahil Baghla and Ayush Varshaney in year 2011. In December, 2014, the company was shutdown due to the copyright issues. Prior to shutdown, the company has raised about $270K from LetsVenture and Times Internet. Bluegape was earning INR 1 crore monthly at the time of shutdown. Within few weeks of putting fullstop to its ecommerce operations, Bluegape was relaunched as a content publishing platform.

Wishberg 

Wishberg, a startup that use to allow users to share a “bucket list” of their goals was launched in year 2012. The company was founded by Pravin Jadhav (CEO) and Kulin Shah (COO). Wishberg had announced that it will seal its operations from July, 2014 post which both the co-founders have decided to join online mobile recharge startup, FreeCharge and to lead its product & growth and partnerships & alliances, respectively. Prior to shutdown, the company raised $150K funding from India Quotient and angel investors like One97 founder and managing director Vijay Shekhar Sharma and HeadHonchos CEO Uday Sodhi.

Chhotu.in

The Delhi-based ecommerce logistics startup chhotu.in was founded in year 2011 by Navneet Singh and Aadhar Agarwal. Later in February 2014, the decided to shutdown its operations as it failed to raise funds to scale and operate further. During the starting days, the company ensured delivery within 24 hours anywhere in India, and had worked with a number of ecommerce ventures, including GKB Opticals, Snapdeal, Yebhi, Yepme, Zivame etc. The company had its operations in metros like Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore, including parts of Punjab. But later it had rolled back operations in Bangalore and Mumbai.

Indiaplaza 

One of India’s ecommerce pioneers Indiaplaza.com decided to shutdown its operations. The company was founded in 2011 by K Vaitheeswaran. Later in year 2014, the company decided to shutdown the operations due to lack of funds. It received its last funding of $5 Mn in April 2011 from Kalaari Capital.

Allschoolstuff 

The Delhi-based ecommerce store for school and student supplies Allschoolstuff.com was founded by Manoj Chandra and Ankur Dinesh Garg in November 2011. Due to lack of funding, company decided to close its operations in April 2014. Prior to its shutdown, the company had raised $1 Mn from Angels Investors Consortium and some other private investors in 2012.

Vriti 

Noida-based online test preparation platform Vriti.com was launched in year 2006 by Swapnil Shrivasatav and Rahul Agarwal. In year 2014, the company stopped its operations due to undisclosed reasons. Earlier, Vriti had raised $5 Mn in Series B round of funding from Jafco and Intel Capital. Previously, it had received $2.5 Mn from Intel Capital in 2008.

Salorix 

Social media marketing and analytics company, Salorix was launched by former NASA scientist and IIT Bombay alumnus Santanu Bhattacharya in 2009. The company twice spurned an acquisition offer from Google which resulted in a row between its founder and investors who were keen that Bhattacharya accept the internet giant’s overture. Later in March 2014, the company stopped its operations due to management crisis. Salorix had raised $3.5 Mn in Series A funding from Inventus Capital Partners and Nexus Venture Partners.

Yebhi 

India’s fashion ecommerce portal Yebhi was founded in 2009 by Manmohan Agarwal and Danish Ahmed. The company was in news for months stating that it is facing cash crunch and might have to shutdown its operations. Later in year 2014, the company decided to change its business model from E-Commerce Marketplace to an ECommerce product aggregator for other online stores. Yebhi had raised INR 100 Cr. in a Series C round of funding from Fidelity Growth Partners India and Qualcomm Incorporated and existing investors like Nexus Venture Partners and Infosys Chairman, Narayana Murthy’s Catamaran Ventures in July 2012.

Zumbl 

Zumbl, a platform built by two IIT Delhi students in year 2012, use to enable members to chat with strangers having similar interests and passions. The startup was launched by Abhishek Gupta and Saurabh Kumar. Later, the company had decided to shutdown the operations as it was not able to pick the pace. Prior to shutdown, it has raised $20K funding from Snapdeal co-founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal.

 Gingr

Gurgaon based Gingr which was launched by Sagar Chandna and Himanshu Bamoria seems to have pull down its operations, however, reasons behind the same is not clear yet. Gingr was part of GSF Accelerator’s batch and had raised $28k in angel funding. Gingr was a social messenger service that use to enable users to communicate with businesses.

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This is part of our special series, In Focus: 2014 In Review, in which we showcase the highlights of 2014 and what’s to come next year in the Indian Tech Ecosystem. Stay tuned for more.

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