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Bangalore-based car repair and servicing startup Pitstop has raised an undisclosed amount of seed funding from Alex Chua, chief operating officer at Singapore-based Goldbell Group, and Rahul Garg, founder of Moglix..
Founded in 2015 by Mihir Mohan and Nirant Ramakuru, Pitstop aims to provide mobile enabled car repair services to owners and service providers. The startup has tied up with various local garages that help users find the nearest dealers as per their budget and convenience.
Mihir Mohan, co-founder of Pitstop, said, “We are delighted to have Alex, Rahul and other investors join us in our exciting journey to revolutionize the car care industry. Our aim is to offer standardized, transparent and hassle free care for car owners at the click of a button. We have currently partnered with 35 local garages which we verify for their level of service. We have stayed away from road-side assistance model as providing assistance in 30 minutes is a challenge.”
With the newly raised funds, the startup aims to strengthen its partner base using technology to streamline processes, infrastructure and customer experience, and expand its operations to other markets including Mumbai, Pune, Chandigarh, Chennai and Hyderabad, over the next quarter.
According to an IBEF report, the Indian auto industry, one of the largest in the world, accounts for 7.1% of the country’s GDP. As of FY 2014-15, around 31% of small cars sold globally are manufactured in India. It also mentions that the sector has the potential to generate up to $300 Bn in annual revenue by 2026, create 65 Mn additional jobs and contribute over 12% to India’s GDP. The automotive sector is valued at approximately $15 Bn in the top 8 cities of which the after sales market is close to $7 Bn and growing at a healthy pace. Pitstop is well-poised to capitalize the unorganized auto service sector and standardize offerings across all car brands.
Pitstop faces competition from other players like Steero, Cartisan, Bumper, Droom, Carzippi and others.
Earlier, the startup had raised funding from multiple investors including Ashutosh Lawania, co-founder of Myntra; and LivSpace co-founders Anuj Srivastava and Ramakant Sharma.
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