Shiprocket’s ‘back-to-the-future’ mission

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August 04, 2022

Hello Reader,

We’ve got 99 problems and the Personal Data Protection (PDP) Bill is one of them.

On Wednesday, the government withdrew its PDP Bill , which was introduced in 2019, basis “multiple amendments and recommendations” proposed by the Joint Parliamentary Committee.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) will now come up with a comprehensive set of legal framework based on the aforementioned. recommendations.

Meanwhile, if you are a fan of candy, the perfect job opportunity awaits you…in Canada. Ontario-based Candy Funhouse is hiring a Chief Candy Officer, who will not only serve as head taste tester bit also try over 3,500 candies a month!

The position is supposed to have a salary of $100,000 Canadian dollars annually, and can be remote or based at the company’s Canada or New Jersey offices. Oh, and candidates can be as young as 5.

Talk about getting a sweet deal. Just remember to read the fine print on that free dental plan on offer!

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about

Shiprocket’s ‘back-to-the-future’ mission
Zomato’s shares tank after block deal
Making Kashmiri crafts mainstream

Here’s your trivia for today: When did the famous Amul Girl make her debut?

Logistics

Shiprocket’s ‘back-to-the-future’ mission

In 2017, Shiprocket (then KartRocket and later Kraftly) was trying to convince small businesses to sell their products online. Today, the Zomato-backed logistics aggregator for ecommerce is nearly a unicorn—with a valuation of about $930 million.

The timing wasn’t right for the (Shopify-like) platform back then, CEO and Co-founder Saahil Goel tells YourStory Founder and CEO Shradha Sharma in an exclusive interview. “We were way too early,” he says.

Shiprocket says it has now found its calling–democratising ecommerce for Bharat.

Hop on the rocket:

Shiprocket’s acquisitions include cargo shipping business Rocketbox, supply chain management solution Glaucus, marketing automation platform Wigzo, logistics aggregator Pickrr, and recently, Omuni, Arvind Internet’s retail enablement business.
The company, which has powered 85 million unique transactions over the years, is seeing traction in smaller towns and cities.
Apart from its platform-as-a-service play, it is also working to take domestic D2C (direct-to-customer) brands and online sellers global.

Funding Alert

$20M

Dezerv
Series A

$12M

TWID

Series A

$10M

Credit Fair

Seed

Foodtech

Zomato’s shares tank after block deal

Zomato is seeing quite a few ups and downs.

The company’s shares slid to Rs 53.30 per share during the mid-day trade on Wednesday, closing at Rs 55.40, lower than its close of Rs 55.60 per share on Tuesday. The slide came after 8.4% equity worth Rs 3,464 crore changed hands in a series of block deals at an average of Rs 53 per share.

The block deal offer made on Tuesday was of Rs 2,938.6 crore of $337 million of Zomato shares for Rs 48-54 per share. While the offer did not name the seller, according to a report by Reuters, ride-hailing giant Uber sold its 7.8% stake in Zomato Limited for $392 million at Rs 50.44 per share in a complete exit.

Off the menu:

Uber Technologies was allotted shares in the foodtech company after the former sold its food delivery business in India, UberEats, to Zomato in 2020.
According to BSE filings, Uber was the second-largest shareholder in Zomato after InfoEdge.
Uber’s quarterly unrealised losses on Zomato amount to $245 million, while its overall unrealised loss on Zomato in 2022 stands at $707 million.

Handicrafts

Making Kashmiri crafts mainstream

A pursuit to find the right papier mache [box] for her husband’s cufflinks led Sadaf Syed to launch her own entrepreneurial venture.

In 2015, Sadaf invested Rs 50,000 and launched Kashmir-based Hands of Gold, a brand that deals in Kashmiri artisanal products including premixes, shawls, stoles, scarfs, papier mache utility items, and more.

From Kashmir, with love:

In 2019, Sadaf decided to revamp the business and introduced more products that are associated with Kashmir, including saffron, kahwa, honey, almond oil, saffron oil among others.
The entrepreneur says Hands of Gold has achieved 70% growth in the last one year on the back of an increase in the number of categories and growing interest.
Hands of Gold competes with brands like Kanz & Muhul, Kashmir Box, and others operating in the same domain.

News & Updates

Hidden treasures: Legend became reality when they uncovered a trove of artifacts from a 350-year-old sunken Spanish galleon, including coins, gemstones and priceless jewels once belonging to seafaring knights.
Riding clean: India plans to order consumers to use cleaner fuels and aims to establish a carbon market under legislation to bolster the country’s push to hit net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2070.
Surprise: The U.S. services industry unexpectedly picked up in July amid strong order growth, while supply bottlenecks and price pressures eased, supporting views that the economy was not in recession despite output slumping in the first half of the year.

Upcoming YourStory Events

D2C Carwaan, an initiative of Brands of New India is all set to come to Indore to bring together stakeholders, founders & investors in the D2C ecosystem!

Brace yourself for insightful conversations on August 5, 2022!

Brands Of New India, YourStory is conducting Mentorship Sessions with distinguished personalities from the D2C ecosystem, who have contributed to building some incredible D2C brands.

We have Devika Srimal Bapna, VP Marketplaces & Growth at FabAlley and Indya conducting a mentorship session on How to Sell and Scale on Marketplaces.

Join us for a virtual event on Aug 26, 2022 for the launch of YourStory’s Health360 Summit, a series of events that aims to delve deep into the roots of India’s healthcare ecosystem- investigating its vulnerabilities to safeguard its future.

Here's what else we have for you

The secret to staying calm under pressure: Learn from Mahesh Bhupathi and Urban Company’s Abhiraj Bahl

In association with AWS

Stress can get the best of all of us. But how do champions and entrepreneurs stay calm and focussed with long working hours and stress? Hear out Mahesh Bhupathi and Urban Company’s Abhiraj Bahl as they share anecdotes of their trying times in the new episode of Torchbearers Inc.

Know More

Apply for the Qualcomm Semiconductor Mentorship Program (QSMP)

In association with Qualcomm

Apply for the Qualcomm Semiconductor Mentorship Program (QSMP), which is the best program for semiconductor startups in India, and win yourself access to 1:1 mentorship, masterclasses, and the opportunity to collaborate with the semiconductor startup ecosystem.To know more, register for an info session that has all the details. Ready to join? Apply now.

Apply Now

AWS and YourStory’s ‘HER Leadership’ series: Interview with Megha Tata

In association with AWS

AWS and YourStory’s ‘HER Leadership’ series - featuring interviews with some of the most successful and prominent enterprise business leaders in India - releases the latest episode of Season 2 with media veteran Megha Tata. Watch the video to catch Megha speak with Chandra Balani, Head Global Enterprise India & Lead - ID&E initiatives, India, AISPL, varied experiences that have shaped her worldview, her learnings over the years, and the importance of women stepping up in the business world.

Watch Now

Profitable from day one, Eyewearlabs shakes up the $2.2B Sunwear market, with its uniqueness, street style, and affordability

In association with EYEWEARLABS

Mumbai-based Eyewearlabs is the next unicorn in the making, offering designer eyewear at a revolutionary price while being socially responsible. Know more about it, creating differences as an alternative.

What you should watch out for

South Korea to launch Danuri, its maiden lunar mission.
Delhi schoolkids to create largest human flag.

Did you know?

When did the famous Amul Girl make her debut?

Answer: In 1967, Amul Girl was created as a rival to Polson’s butter girl.

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