Hyper-local Delivery Startups Getting Hot Capital In India
Opinio, a Bengalore-based hyper-local delivery startup, has raised a $7 million Series A led by Indian logistics firm Delhivery, with participation by Sands Capital Ventures and existing investor Accel Partners, following Opinio’s $1.3 million seed round in July.
Delhivery itself recently closed a $85 million Series D round, with investors including Multiple Asset Management, Nexus Venture Partners and Times Internet. Sahil Barura, CEO of Delhivery, has joined Opinio’s board.
Hyper-local delivery startups, applying technology to tackle the challenging “last-mile delivery” problem in India, are hot investments right now. As India’s logistics networks are built out, the last-mile is well known to be the most costly leg of the entire supply chain.
Opinio is the latest to score funding in a niche that has reportedly raised over $200 million in risk capital over the past 10 months. Other companies, both B2B and B2C, that have landed funding recently include Zopper, Pickingo, Shawdowfax and Sequoia-backed Roadrunnr. In July, Delhivery had made an undisclosed investment in an on-demand shipping startup Parcelled.
Founded in June, Opinio operates in Bangalore, Delhi and Hyderabad, delivering goods from local businesses. The startup does not stock its own inventory. Instead, customers order from within a 5-7 km radius through the company’s app, which links merchants with the nearest delivery driver. Users can track their deliveries in real time.
Opinio plans to use the new funds to expand into more cities, build out its technology, expand its product, and add 200 employees to its existing 100-person team. The startup claims that its fleet of drivers is growing 30 percent week on week. As of last month, the company had partnered with 500 merchants.