The Shipping Master In the coming years, Shiprocket intends to grow its tech offering, fulfillment and warehousing and expand internationally
By Soumya Duggal •
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Shiprocket seeks to democratize Indian eCommerce by creating a simple, open and predictable shipping platform for all independent businesses, according to Saahil Goel, CEO and founder, Shiprocket.
Founded in 2017, the startup offers a suite of tech-led products for retailers to easily ship their goods across the country, offer delivery (same day/next day), reduce returns and failed deliveries through automated NDR processing and Whatsapp communication, improve customer retention with centralized dashboard and ship through over 17 carriers and 45 fulfillment locations. It also supports all modes of shipping such as air, surface, local, bulk and cross border.
"We believe that a level playing field for online commerce is necessary for entrepreneurs of all sizes to flourish and this will create a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem," said Goel.
Shiprocket's offerings also include several value-added services: Shiprocket Fulfillment (a complete eCommerce fulfillment solution, providing same day/next day deliveries), ShiprocketX (makes cross-border shipments easy); Shiprocket Engage (a seamless buyer communication suite powered by AI-backed Whatsapp automation); etc.
According to Goel, the logistics platform helps 200,000 merchants annually by reducing the entry barriers, powering $4 billion of GMV through the platform, cutting down logistics costs for the merchants by 10-15 per cent and helping the latter in selecting the right shipping partners and creating a personalized brand experience.
"Shiprocket has made it possible for anyone to participate in full stack e-commerce without sharing a large chunk of their margins or without upfront investment. Further, we have successfully leveled the playing field by bringing world class experiences and workflows to the direct commerce universe in India," claimed Goel.
Indian e-commerce market is expected to reach $120 billion by 2026, and this exponential rise in retail and e-commerce businesses will fuel the economic growth of the warehousing and logistics sector in the country, according to a recnt report by industry body FICCI and property consultancy Anarock. Naturally, staying relevant as well as ahead of the curve in such an ever-changing marketplace poses a constant challenge in the industry for most logistics startups.
"We are a platform built by our users and their needs. We focus on hard problems and constantly look for innovative ways to solve them using the latest technology available. We were the first ones to use a wallet system for shipping, using data science for courier recommendations and using AI to reduce disputes and improve shipping SLAs for our merchants," states Goel.
Apart from its platform-as-a-service play, Shiprocket is also working to take domestic D2C brands and online sellers global. The company announced the launch of its cross-border business, ShiprocketX, in June 2022, aiming to make shipping hassle-free for international orders as it has done for domestic shipments. Partnering with companies such as Rocketbox, Wigzo, Glaucus, Pickrr and Omuni, it aims to soon own the end-to-end delivery segment. The organization has also recently set foot in the Middle East and has started its operations in Saudi Arabia and is expecting to expand across the Middle East in the next few months.
Unit economics and overall cost discipline are huge focus areas for operators on their path to profitability. "With the right discipline and focus, any business can be profitable given they have a product that customers really need. Shiprocket is building tech first as well as business first approach, prioritizing every business needs as they must go through in their Lifecycle," opined Goel.
In the coming years, Shiprocket intends to grow its tech offering, fulfillment and warehousing and expand internationally.
Factsheet:
- Year of inception: 2017
- No. of employees: 1200+
- Revenue for FY 2021-22: 611.1 Cr
- External funding received so far: $309.79 million
- Major clients: Mamaearth, Boat, Da Milano, Bodycare
