Infra.Market Raises $20 Mn In Series B Round From Evolvence, Sistema Asia Fund, Foundamental GmbH The new funds will enable the team to seed newer markets and advance their integration initiatives such as private labels and direct to the retail channel
By Prabhjeet Bhatla •
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India-based technology firm Infra.Market, which provides a one-stop marketplace for quality construction materials, logistics, and financing support, on Thursday, said that it has raised a Series B round from Evolvence India Fund, Sistema Asia Fund and Foundamental GmbH. Existing investors in the company include Accel, Tiger Global, and Nexus also participated in the round.
Founded by Souvik Sengupta and Aaditya Sharda in 2016, the online procurement marketplace leverages technology to provide an enhanced procurement experience for all players in the construction ecosystem.
"We are excited to onboard the new investors on the journey to build one of the largest B2B startups in India. We are thankful for the new investors and the continued support of our existing investors as we remain focused on building a profitable and sustainable venture while reshaping the construction ecosystem through technology," added Sharda, founder, Infra.Market.
The three funds claim to be the new incoming investors for the construction material marketplace, supporting its growth amidst an inflection in the Indian infra industry.
"Infra.Market is disrupting the largely fragmented construction industry procurement in India which is at the cusp of an inflection given the policy-driven focus on the sector. We are delighted by the company's rapid growth while ensuring sustainable economics and are confident that Souvik and Aaditya are creating an important institution in the context of India's bounce-back in the post-COVID world," said Sumit Jain, senior partner, Sistema Asia Fund.
The company focuses on high-volume construction products under its own brands and aim to solve existing issues such as a lack of price transparency, unreliable quality, a fragmented vendor base, and inefficient logistics.
"We believe strongly that infrastructure and construction activity in India will continue to see significant tailwinds as the government backs its vision for India to be amongst the fastest growing economies globally. As an enabler to this sector, Infra.Market has emerged as one of the most disruptive companies through pioneering technological innovation in the procurement and distribution of building materials catering to the infrastructure and construction industry by improving logistics, financing, procurement, and project management of large scale projects in key markets across India. The company has very quickly demonstrated remarkable growth backed by a solid business model and deep sector domain knowledge of its founders and management team," commented RohitBatra, partner, Evolvence India.
This financial year, Infra.Market reported revenue growth of 5.5 times year-on-year, expanded to tier-II cities in India, and has exceeded pre COVID-19 revenue levels while maintaining healthy economics and bottom-line profitability. The new funds will enable the team to seed newer markets and advance their integration initiatives such as private labels and direct to the retail channel.
"At Infra.Market, Souvik, and Aaditya have built not just the market leader in the space of procurement for construction but created an entirely new playbook for manufacturing & distribution of materials, a $200+ Billion market with significant tailwinds. In the process, they have also consistently delivered a rare, best-in-class combination of growth and profitability. We are incredibly proud to be a part of their story," remarked Shubhankar, partner, Foundamental Capital GmbH.
Currently, Infra.Market is achieving $180 million annualized GMV and intends to grow this up to $300 million by March 2021. They are working across 10 States in India and are looking to expand further into tier II cities within these states. It caters to both institutional customers (B2B) and retail outlets (D2R) in the construction material sector. Almost 10% of the revenues of the startup are currently generated from its international operations. It currently exports to countries such as Dubai, Singapore, Malaysia and will use infuse a portion of the current funds to enhance its International operations.
