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After it refuelled its coffers with $200 Mn in fresh funds from Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan in February this year, Snapdeal has raised yet another tranche of the same round. As per a Livemint report, Luxembourg-based firm Clouse S has ploughed in another $21 Mn in the ecommerce firm as a part of the same round.
Much to the company’s relief, the infusion has been done at the existing valuation of $6.5 Bn. A Snapdeal spokesperson stated, “The raising of fresh funds at a consistent pre-money valuation is a reflection of the robust performance of Snapdeal and its continued focus on building a long-term business based on strong fundamentals like best-in-class customer experience and consistent growth in net revenue. There is huge interest in the digital commerce market in India and investors are keen to back the businesses focused on real performance metrics.”
According to the RoC documents, Jasper Infotech Pvt. Ltd, which runs ecommerce firm Snapdeal, had also raised about $50 Mn from the Singapore-based Brother Fortune Apparel Pte Ltd in Series J round in February. Bennett Coleman and Co. Ltd had also participated in the round.
Prior to that round, it had raised $500 Mn from Alibaba Group, Foxconn Technology Group and Softbank at a valuation of $5 Bn.
Notably, the fresh influx of funds comes just ahead of Diwali season, for which all ecommerce players are gearing up. Earlier this month, in a bid to provide one-touch facility to sellers, Snapdeal also opened six new logistics hubs across Delhi/NCR, Lucknow, Hyderabad, and Kolkata.
Like its counterpart Flipkart, Snapdeal too has been focussing on cutting costs and getting its loss-making model right. In this direction, it decided to shut Exclusively, its online platform for premium and luxury fashion goods that it acquired 18 months ago. Last month, it also cut down the sellers’ commissions. In February this year, it also asked 200 of its employees in its consumer service department to improve their performance or head out.
As per industry experts, the upcoming Diwali season will be a conclusive one, as far as winners and laggards in the ecommerce space are concerned. With Amazon breathing down their necks, Flipkart and Snapdeal are leaving no stone unturned to gain some headway. In this regard, Snapdeal also announced plans to spend INR 200 CR on a campaign over the next 60 days.
Meanwhile, Amazon opened its largest Fulfilment Centre (FC) in Sonipat near New Delhi in July, clearly signalling that the competition will only get tougher this Diwali. A month before that, it invested $200 Mn in its Indian unit. India’s ecommerce market is expected to grow to $103 Bn by 2020, as per a report by Goldman Sachs. And all the biggies are fighting tooth and nail to grab the biggest portion of this ever growing pie.
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