Logistics Startup Shipsy Raises Funding From Info Edge To Expand Product

Gurugram-based digital logistics platform Shipsy has raised an undisclosed amount of Pre-Series A funding led by Info Edge (India) Ltd.

In a press statement, Shipsy said that the fund will be utilised to enable the brand to expand its product offerings and create visibility in the market. It also said that this will give a push to the company to prepare for the Series A round by early next year for an organic expansion beyond the Indian market.

Kitty Agarwal, the head of the investment wing at Info Edge, said that the global logistics is unorganised and all the participants work in silos, thereby losing a lot of efficiency in the system. He believes that proper streamlining of the process could help the segment in optimising and centralising the cash flow. At the same time, he also said that the logistics industry is witnessing a rapid technology adoption.

“Shipsy’s founding team has built that by leveraging in domain knowledge and continuous innovation to execute a disciplined and focused approach. And we are really excited to partner with them.” – Agarwal. 

Founded in 2015, Shipsy was initially started by IITians, Soham Chokshi and Dhruv Agarwal, who have worked together with Deutsche Bank earlier. Later, they were joined by Himanshu Gupta and Sahil Arora, their batchmates from IIT Delhi. As time progressed, Harsh Kumar, the ex-cofounder of the digital freight forwarder, Cogoport, also joined the company, expanding its top management.

In addition to this, the top management of the company also includes mentor Arun Kumar, ex-MD of Bridgestone Americas and senior advisor to McKinsey & Company.

Chokshi said in a statement that the companies involved in the supply chain area can save high costs to improve their bottom line. Logistics needs global connectivity, and therefore, it becomes natural to serve the participants across the globe, he added.

As a digital logistics platform, Shipsy recently launched a new solution for exporters and importers to manage their vendors for price procurement, shipment execution and end-to-end container tracking.

The solution comes with additional offerings such as less than load (LTL) tracking, route optimisation to Indian and global clients. Currently, the platform has seen steady growth with 120+ shippers coming onboard, including petrochemical, iron and steel, textile and agro companies.

According to MarketsandMarkets, in 2018, the global logistics market was valued at $4,730 Bn, and is projected to reach a value of $6,300 Bn by 2024. Also, the global logistics automation market accounted for $42.8 Bn in 2017 and is expected to reach $126.53 Bn by 2026 growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.8%.

However, in India, there exists a huge potential as the market size of the logistics sector is poised to hit $215 Bn by 2020, at a CAGR of 10.5%, as per IBEF report. The logistics sector is also said to generate millions of job opportunities in the country, with 22 Mn people currently involved. The number of people working in this sector is expected to reach 40 Mn by 2020.