Get All Access for $5/mo

This Healthtech Is Collecting Test Samples From Your Doorstep Using Flebo.in, the customer can compare diagnostics labs and choose the best one based on reputation, price, turnaround time and proximity

By Soumya Duggal

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.

Ashish Vikram, co-founder and CEO, Flebo.in

Dial back time to the most isolating weeks and months over the past two years when stepping outside the house, even to purchase medicines, induced anxiety for fear of getting infected with COVID-19. A significant demand for e-pharmacies and virtual doctor consultations arose, as did that for home-collection of samples for Covid tests due to the realization that physically going to a lab meant exposing oneself to the virus. Thus was born Flebo.in, a health-tech startup to provide sample collection services.

"There was no professional company doing this job. Labs started to employ independent contractors for home collection but customers were always apprehensive about the quality of services: do the home collection agents (phlebotomists) come on time or keep you waiting? Do they use good quality equipment? And so on," recounts Ashish Vikram, co-founder and CEO, Flebo.in.

"Flebo.in was started to provide professional, high-quality phlebotomy services for all labs. The customer can compare labs and choose the best one based on reputation, price, turnaround time and proximity. Our phlebotomists use FDA-certified tools such as patented needles and syringes that self-destruct after the first use to make reusing needles impossible," he continues, adding, "Preventive tests are often skipped by busy Indians because of their hectic lifestyles. We require only five minutes of a person's time at a time and place of their choosing, thus eliminating all excuses for not getting tested regularly."

To achieve such efficiency, Vikram and his team had to build a good pipeline of candidates for hiring high-quality phlebotomists who were focussed on customer satisfaction. An in-house training program ensured these people (both male and female) were skilled and trained for the job, a process informed by customer feedback and a variable salary system based on performance.

"Another big challenge was around building an AI-based IT platform that would handle everything including data integrations with different labs, taking customer bookings, assignment and routing of phlebotomists, enabling customer feedback, tracking on-time collections and report deliveries and automatically calculating employee salaries as well as managing a customer wallet and refunding customers in case of errors or delays."

Initially, the founders used their own funds to finance this venture. They believed in its potential and did not want to go for external funding before proving the entire value proposition, including signing labs, building a pipeline for hiring and training phlebotomists, etc.

"We therefore launched in Delhi NCR as a proof of concept and have in fact demonstrated all of the above. More than 90 per cent of our customers have given us a 4.9 star on a rating with an average rating of 4. Having proved the value proposition, at this point, we do not see any challenges with funding that will allow us to expand country wide. We are in active discussions with multiple VCs," reveals Vikram.

Flebo.in plans to quickly expand its lab aggregator business to support as many pin codes in the country as possible over the next two years.

Soumya Duggal

Former Feature Writer

News and Trends

Haber Secures USD 44 Mn in Series C Round to Drive Global Expansion

Accel remains the largest external stakeholder with an 18.1% stake, followed by Creaegis and Elevation.

News and Trends

Recur Club Announces Credit Offerings for Startups Beyond Series A and SMEs

In FY 24–25, the platform also plans to deploy an additional INR 2000 crores through its Recur Swift program for startups.

Fundraising

Will Investors Bite on a Pizza Wallet? Find Out on the Wild Season Finale of 'Elevator Pitch.'

On the season 12 finale of "Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch," contestants teach investors to look at ordinary things in a whole new way.

News and Trends

Tech Giants and MSMEs: Friends or Foes In the Digital Ecosystem?

The dominance of tech giants presents both opportunities and challenges for MSMEs. While these platforms provide essential tools and global reach, their control over key digital infrastructures often creates significant barriers for smaller businesses.

News and Trends

East Ocyon Bio, Culture Circle, Power Gummies, and Navanc Raise Early-Stage Funding

The startups listed below have disclosed investment rounds.

News and Trends

How Cactus Partners' Growth Playbook Drives Valuations and Success for its Portfolio

The modus operandi of Cactus is helping companies put the governance systems in place with required boards and committees, preferably at the series A stage or beyond.