D2C Foussed Fluid Ventures Announces Its Debut Investment in Jaipur-based Fabriclore

• Fluid Ventures, an early-stage venture capital fund invests in Direct to Consumer early-stage start-ups.
• Fabriclore is a leading digital retailer of fabrics serving its customers through their own platform both in India and internationally, perfectly fits the Investment thesis of the fund.
• The fund is leading the Pre-Series A round with USD 2,40,000 that is being used for customer acquisition and international expansion

Mumbai, September 17, 2021: Fluid Ventures, the Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) focused venture capital fund, has announced its debut investment in Fabriclore from its INR 80 Crore fund.

Fabriclore is a Jaipur-based leading digital retailer of fabrics that offers one of the widest ranges of fabrics, producing one of the largest and versatile fabric catalogs on a digital platform.

With pandemic hitting the world last year, consumer behavior has changed drastically and it is likely to stay and with an agility of digital platforms, quality and diversity of products and quick dispatch and delivery is engaging consumers in digital shopping more than visits to physical stores, both far and near. Fluid Ventures had envisaged the need for D2C platforms much earlier. So with the aim to promote the startup ecosystem in India, the fund announced its first close this year in May’2021 and is going to invest in 15 Direct to consumer startups from its fund.

Amit Singal, General Partner, Fluid Ventures

Dhianu Das, General Partner, Fluid Ventures

"We invest in startups that have successfully executed their capability and have achieved customer validation in the addressed market. In Fabriclore we found a startup which has defined competitive advantage,” says Amit Singal, General Partner, Fluid Ventures. “We not only provide funds but also provide hands-on support to the start-ups in achieving business milestones,” he adds.

Mr. Singal added the fund will be deploying the entire corpus of INR 80 Crore in Direct to Consumer Indian products and brands over the next three years, with a ticket size of INR 2 ~4 Crore per deal in Pre-Series A and Series A rounds.

Fluid Ventures is leading the current round with USD 2,40,000 in Fabriclore that is being deployed primarily for customer acquisition and international expansion. Fabriclore from its 10,000+ catalogue offers customization of garments, accessories and home furnishing over a digital platform along with maintaining the quality of the fabrics. The company has acknowledged an Annual Revenue Requirement (AAR) of INR 11.25 crore for the year 2021-22.

Dhianu Das, General Partner, Fluid Ventures, says: “While investment in D2C companies seemed risky to many investors because of the pandemic situation, we at Fluid Ventures felt it was necessary to boost up the morale of our home-grown D2C start-ups. D2C is the way ahead and the entrepreneurs need our encouragement and support. We will continue to provide it.”

Jaipur Startup Nanomatrix Materials Unveils Graphene-based AC Filters for Protection Against Airborne Virus, Bacteria and Fungus

G1 AC Filters-A breakthrough in indoor air purification by Nanomatrix Materials for protection against airborne virus, bacteria and fungus

This new ASTM certified AC Filters can kill 99% of airborne viruses and bacteria and can even protect you from Black Fungus outbreak

New Delhi/Jaipur, 25/June/2021: Nanomatrix Materials, a Jaipur based startup that manufactures disruptive graphene nanotechnology and integrate it into smarter application, has recently introduced a new product range of G1 AC Filters for Air Conditioners using Graphene-silver nanotechnology which purifies in room air including sterilizing 99% airborne microbes along with filtration of dust particles, also capable to reduce harmful VOC/gases. This product will convert conventional air conditioner into air purifier.

In these recent times we have seen that first wave of SARS COVID-19 pandemic hitting the population in India, the second wave has proved to be an ominous report. With the development of new variants, COVID-19 has become a baffling situation with the rise of its derivatives, i.e Mucormycosis or black fungus complication caused by fungal infection. People catch mucormycosis by coming in contact with the fungal spores in the environment. These airborne widespread and prevalent diseases can only be controlled with sincere atmospheric precautions inside as well as outside the homes. As per the WHO guidelines, wearing masks and proper sanitisation can prevent the virus entering into our systems.

G1 wonder Air Conditioner Filters are in itself a breakthrough in air filtration domain as these filters will not just protect you from dust and pollution but will actively destroy airborne viruses & bacteria while purifying the air by removing VOCs. This newly launched air filter has a layer of NM graphene membrane which uses Graphene-Silver nanotechnology to protect you from viruses by killing them along with filtration of certain harmful gases. Graphene filters also prohibit the growth of number of microorganisms including fungus. The filter removes PM 2.5 and above particles from the air with the efficiency of more than 99%, also proven to remove volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as formaldehyde (which secretes from the wooden furniture in most households), benzene etc. VOCs are a large group of chemicals that are found in different products used in our daily lives like cosmetics, fuel, gasoline, air fresheners, cleaning products, or used at home in building materials like paints, varnishes etc.

VOCs have harmful effects on health and once released in the air, they hamper the air quality thus making it unfit for breathing and may lead to breathing problems, and these air purifiers are specifically designed for VOC reduction. Particulate matter (PM) are micro particles of solids suspended in the air, they could be coarse or fine and are released from numerous sources, including dust and other small particles from construction. Acute exposure to particulate matter may lead to serious cardiovascular and respiratory diseases and that’s why this technology shall be taken into consideration during pandemic situations when airborne diseases are giving rise to different variants and their derivatives.

This technology can be used in any existing centralized HVAC system, AHUs or FCUs for crowded place like airports, malls, schools, hospitals where there is higher risk of contamination. The installation of these G1 AC filters is very easy and splendid. You have to clean your (screen) plastic mesh provided in the AC, then place G1 AC Filters vertically onto the centre of the screen allowing gap on each side, cut if extra. Then re-install the mesh screen with G1 AC filter back on the AC. These are the only filters that can be reused after washing. Replace G1 AC filters when they get clogged and/or there is a drop in the air flow.

Speaking on the occasion of the launch, Nanomatrix Materials founder Vikas Bardiya said --

After studying about the covid-19 virus and other communicable diseases caused due to microorganisms, we can briefly conclude Graphene is the shield for most airborne pathogens. In most cases, indoor air quality index is more disturbing than outside, due to closed or poor ventilation. After the successful launch of our G1 Wonder Masks which are for personal use, now G1 AC Filters is another addition to our 3600 protection drive that protects your surroundings. Graphene-silver nanotechnology membrane inside developed by Nanomatrix Materials is proven to destroy airborne diseases causing virus &bacteria’s along with filtering harmful gases and VOCs present in the atmosphere. This costs 10x cheaper than air purifiers and provides you protection on the go. G1 AC Filters has gone through the tests from the independent certified laboratories before getting launched in the market.

G1 AC Filters has an MRP of Rs. 1999 and is proved to be a successful variant to kill 99% airborne viruses, fungus and reduce pollution. You can order this product easily via our website www. g1wonders.com or through e-commerce website like Amazon and Flipkart.

About Nanomatrix Materials

Nanomatrix Materials (NM) is a Jaipur-based startup, which is a nano and advanced material manufacturer that uses proprietary disruptive graphene technology and its integration into smarter applications. The company was founded in February 2020, however the promoters are involved in the graphite space for the past decade and have been working on developing graphene based intellectual property for 2 years.

Jaipur-based Frontier Markets Raises $2.25 Mn in Funding led by ENGIE Rassembleurs d’Energies, The Rise Fund, and The Singh Family Trusts

Jaipur-based last mile rural distribution startup, Frontier Markets announced that it has raised $2.25 million pre-series A financing led by ENGIE Rassembleurs d’Energies, The Rise Fund, and The Singh Family Trusts (advised by Artha Impact), along with Teja Ventures and affiliates of Beyond Capital Fund.

Frontier Markets is a last mile assisted e-commerce and distribution company that leverages its network of tech-enabled women agents to market, sell and service products and services across rural India. The current investment will drive the company’s assisted e-commerce platform to the next level, adding digital marketing tools, AI enabled digital training, and a B2C solution onboarding their rural customers directly on their digital platform. The company will leverage its B2B2C e-commerce to drive digital and physical services to rural customers and become the primary income source for rural women.

165 million rural households do not have access to life-improving products and digital services. Product and service companies have not invested in brick-and-mortar infrastructure, and mainstream e-commerce platforms have not built the distribution infrastructure to reach these customers—despite widespread smartphone ownership and 4G connectivity. With limited mobility, rural women do not get to participate in product purchasing decisions – a need gap that Frontier Markets is trying to address by developing a high tech-touch platform to ensure local connect with rural customers through women entrepreneurs, curated product basket of solutions, local delivery and after-sales services, all managed through a digital platform for real-time tracking of services, customer satisfaction, and insights to track their impact and new opportunities. 

Founded in 2011 by Ajaita Shah, Frontier Markets started as a clean energy access firm delivering solutions in lighting and appliances to rural households in Rajasthan. Since then, the company has pivoted to an inclusive products and digital service platform driving doorstep deliveries of appliances, agriculture, energy, and digital services with their network of women entrepreneurs to become an all-in-one market place for rural consumers. They have also developed a hybrid offline-online solution harnessing an on-the-ground presence with its consumer service centers, delivery team, and entrepreneurs all digitized to deliver real-time services, and value to the last mile. Today, Frontier Markets has over 4,000 women entrepreneurs who are tech-enabled using its proprietary assisted-e commerce platform to deliver over 1 million products and services to 700,000 rural customers in Rajasthan, UP, and Bihar. The company is associated with several partners including Samsung, Crompton, HUL, Eko India Financial Services, and more to curate products based on data insights collected through their tech platform.

In response to COVID-19, Frontier Markets launched doorstep delivery of essential goods and digital banking services as a response to the challenges presented by limited access to supplies in rural India. This funding round demonstrates the continued confidence of investors in the company’s business model.

Speaking on the announcement, Ajaita Shah, Founder and CEO of Frontier Markets said, “Prior to COVID-19, Frontier Markets invested in a technology platform that leveraged data to deliver a wider range of products and services in energy, finance, connectivity, agriculture and more to the last mile consumer, digitally onboarding all of our agent network. Today, we have added essential products and services—from food to protective gear to mobile banking, recognizing that our customers trust us and want us to deliver all solutions to them through our platform. We have a unique opportunity to drive innovative partnerships with digital service companies who are keen to access rural customers, as well as governments who want to add value to their constituents through women entrepreneurs. We will leverage on this experience to deliver future growth and scale throughout India with women at the center of the value chain.”

Ajaita Shah, Founder, Frontier Markets

Lead Investor Anne Chassagnette, Managing Director of ENGIE Rassembleurs d’Energies’s commented, “The swift adjustment of Frontier Markets’ organization to the COVID-19 crisis and its ability to leverage its innovative tech platform to address the essential needs of rural population on short notice confirm our full support and our trust in its trailblazing business model. This is fully in line with our objective to promote shared and sustainable growth for all thanks to sustainable business solutions.”

“We have always believed in the transformative role of technology and data in scaling outreach and fulfilment of underserved consumers.  Post-covid, what was “socially good” has now become essential and urgent – Frontier Markets is leveraging upon the untapped opportunity of 900 million rural consumers through rapid expansion of its technology platform and its network of digitally enabled women micro entrepreneurs,” remarked Virginia Tan, Founding Partner, Teja Ventures.

Frontier Markets envisions India’s first B2B2C rural platform to drive services to rural customers nationally. By 2025, the company plans to grow to 1 million rural women entrepreneurs serving 100 million consumers with all types of products and services relating to agriculture, Insurance and environment to drive economic empowerment in Bharat India. Thereby, making it the largest rural platform for product companies, service providers and more.

Jaipur Based Edtech Company Tinkerly Inks MoU with CIE, Delhi University

Jaipur based edtech company Tinkerly (Elation Edtech Pvt. Ltd.) has inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Central Institute of Education (CIE) now known as the Department of Education of the University of Delhi, to nurture and promote creative & innovative mind-sets in schools.

The MoU was signed by CIE Delhi Dean and Head of the Department, Dr. Namita Ranganathan and Managing Director, Tinkerly, Mr. Vivek Pathak in presence of Associate Professor, Dr. Alka Behari and other representatives from Tinkerly.

[caption id="attachment_134959" align="aligncenter" width="656"] Signing of MoU between Tinkerly and CIE, University of Delhi[/caption]

The agreement, in the form of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), formalises the mutual interaction and strengthens the relationship between Tinkerly and CIE at the strategic and working level, focusing on the development of students, the interaction between students and teachers and the manner in which innovation lab are setup in schools by Tinkerly to establish and promote the ecosystem of innovation at various levels - schools, education research institutes etc.

According to the MoU, Tinkerly will support CIE with innovative teaching aides, equipment and tech platform to establish an Innovation Lab on campus and CIE will provide its academic expertise and resources to measure the impact and scope of the same in the schools at various levels.

Dr. Ranganathan said, “We are very happy at the Department of Education that we have been able to get into an alliance with Tinkerly. Both our organisations seem to be working towards a common goal… making science learning and teaching more effective and process based.

The pedagogic stance of STEM (An acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) when combined with the constructivist approach of Science teaching would it is expected create more enriched learning experiences for students in science classrooms.”

She further added, “We are thankful to team Tinkerly for engaging with our students & teachers and our community of Science Pedagogues. We hope this alliance will be mutually beneficial to both parties. Our Science Teachers were very happy with the training inputs given by the team. We will fulfill the mandate given to us to the best of our ability.”

Tinkerly is an education technology company that has benefitted 75,000+ students across 180+ schools in India via its various STEM solutions such as Innovation Lab, Tinkering Lab, STEM education Kits etc. The Innovation Lab (TIL) program blends with school's existing lesson plan and allows teachers to practically demonstrate typical concepts of science in the classroom.

The program uses a well-researched 5D (See, Touch, Feel, Perform and Understand) pedagogy, that complements experiential learning. 21st century kids need learning suitable for the 21st century challenges and TIL is the future of how GenZ is going to be taught and to learn, in an environment that fosters creativity and boosts their intelligence

Vivek Pathak, Managing Director, Tinkerly said, “The Department of Education, University of Delhi, earlier known as CIE, is perhaps the first major and the best institution of professional learning and research in Education that was established since independence.

Maulana Azad visualized the function of it not merely to turn out teachers who will be ‘model teachers’, but to evolve into a research centre for solving new educational problems of the country."

He added, “The Department has shaped its unique philosophy, which also finds reflection in all its programmes. I am glad that we have joined hands to support our mission to enable and inspire innovators of tomorrow by connecting STEM dots in global K12 education. This association will bring significant developments in STEM pedagogy, technology in education and curriculum of education colleges for 21st Century.”

While Govt. of India is all set to bring out a New education policy into action, such alliance will open gates for more industry academia partnerships in education research meeting the changing dynamics of the 21st century requirements with regards to quality education, innovation and research, aiming to make India a knowledge superpower by equipping its students with the necessary skills and knowledge and to eliminate the shortage of manpower in science, technology, academics and industry.

Indian Startup bags Best Startup Award at Dubai’s Biggest Startup Investment Fest AIM Startup Summit

An Indian Startup “Aviotron Automations” has bagged the best startup award at the Annual Investment Meeting in Dubai. Annual Investment Meeting is the premier investment conference organized by the UAE Ministry of Economy. The UAE Government began organizing AIM Startup Summit as a parallel platform alongside the AIM congress to promote international co-operation, investment and knowledge sharing for startups.

Headquartered in Jaipur, Rajasthan, Aviotron Automations is a aero-modelling kit manufacturer and offers custom made pre-cutted aero model kits

This event was the final international stage of the startup pitch competition held by AIM Startup. These startups pitching here were the final winners of the national pitch competition organized in multiple countries.

Neera Inamdar, VP at GREX says “We are delighted to see one of our companies as one of the category winners and I congratulate Aviotron for this recognition. Aviotron will also get an invite to participate in the forthcoming Global Investment in Aviation Summit as a special invitee. This was the first year that we organized AIM pitches in India, and I am happy with what we could do for our startups.”

Aviotron received this recognition along with a cash prize of USD 10K. Vaishnav, co-founder of Aviotron says,” AIM Startup turned out an exciting event for us. We received good investor interest as well as managed to get some business deals. This can very well become our launchpad for further expansion in multiple geographies. We went through multiple qualifying rounds in India organized by GREX and they also provided required support at all the levels. Such initiatives are helping the startups in India accessing global ecosystem."



Founded in 2017, Aviotron Automations has a mission to inspire intellects towards the field of Aeromodelling, 3D Printing and CAD/CAM/CAE. The company specializes in providing Training workshop to educational institution, Corporate training, In house courses and Engineering outsourcing. They are the suppliers /Manufacturer of Aeromodelling Balsa wood laser cut Kits.

The main aim of the startup lies in developing the young mind of the country to indicate much-needed skills for this competitive environment through the art of Aeromodelling and robotics thus making it fun and interesting altogether. These technologies are the best possible applications of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and Curriculum based on Indian school education system (CBSE, ICSE etc).

[Top Image - Facebook.com/aviotronautomations]

Solar EPC Firm Rays Power Infra Raises $28.5 Mn from DMI Finance

Jaipur headquartered solar power developer and EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) player, Rays Power Infra, has closed first round of Rs 200-crore (~ US$28.514 million) in mix of debt and equity funding from DMI Finance (DMI), a New Delhi-based Non-Bank Finance Company.

The Solar startup would use majority of the fresh capital raised in strengthening its presence in the country and develop ground-mounted solar power projects. Rays also plans to grow its co-development business model, a bespoke model that Rays has pioneered in the Indian solar industry, a company statement said.

Founded in 2011, Rays Power Infra is one of the Largest solar developer and EPC management company. An EPC company provides engineering design, obtain equipment, and then deliver the functioning asset to the client. Rays has built a solar portfolio of 64 megawatt (MW) and has an EPC track record of delivering over 500 MW of solar assets.

Ketan Mehta, founder and managing director, Rays Power Infra, said, “...As co-developer partner, we are involved in financial closure and equity investment for development of project prior to sale. We intend to utilize the funds in pursuing development of further assets on co-development basis."

The company said that it is pursuing opportunities in distributed generation, rooftop solar assets and entering the retail sector with e-mobility solar solutions targeting retail consumers.

With 620 MW projects under its portfolio, Rays was ranked as the 3rd largest Solar EPC Player in the country in 2015 following which it again was recognized as one of the top 10 players across the globe apart from US & China in 2017 by IHS Markit.

In recent funding of solar energy companies, Delhi-based Azure Power, which is one of the country’s largest independent solar power producers with a solar portfolio of over 3 Giga Watt spread across 23 states, has raised around $185 million primary capital through an equity offering.

In August this year, Hyderabad based Cygni Energy Private Limited, an innovative Solar-DC solutions startup had raised funds of $ 6.4 Million in a combination of Equity and Debt. The equity funding is led by Endiya Partners, a leading early-stage venture capital firm that invests in product startups and the debt by IndusInd Bank, a leading Private Bank in India.

In June, an another solar energy startup, Fourth Partner Energy, also based out of Hyderabad had raised whopping $70 million in Series B funding from The Rise Fund, a global impact investment fund managed by TPG Growth.

Source - Economic Times

Jaipur-based Experiential Learning Startup SRJNA Raises Funding from Gray Matters Capital’s edLABS

Jaipur based SRJNA, a brand of Elation Edtech Pvt. Ltd., which helps schools to integrate hands on, affordable and turnkey STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Maths) solutions in their regular curriculum by setting up and facilitating Innovation and Tinkering Labs, has today announced that it has raised funds from US-based impact investor Gray Matters Capital under its edLABS initiative.

Just last month, edLABS initiative made an investment of $180,000 in Kidovators, a skill learning platform of Bengaluru based ADD-on-GYAN Educational Services Pvt. Ltd..

edLABS, Gray Matters Capital’s early stage education and skilling sector focused innovation portfolio, is committing $8 million over the next 3 years to for-profit enterprises to help ‘visionary edu-preneurs’ build breakthrough solutions that address education gaps, 21st century skills and future of work for the Indian mass market.

The funding of SRJNA marks the first of the four investments to be made by Gray Matters Capital through edLABS in September, after closing of a seed round funding of US$ 150,000 in 21^st century skill learning platform – Kidovators in July 2018.

The company has also received funding Keiretsu Forum – a global investment community of accredited private equity angel investors, venture capitalists and institutional investors and SucSEED Venture Partners in this round.

“We at SRJNA are making it easier for schools to upgrade themselves as a STEM powered school with our comprehensive end to end offerings”, said Sharad Bansal, Co-Founder and CEO, SRJNA. “We are happy to have won the interest of investors like Gray Matters Capital’s edLABS who bring in the breadth and depth of domain expertise and high impact network in the education space, beyond capital. With the current round of funding from edLABS, Keiritsu and SucSEED Ventures, SRJNA will look at augmenting its content R&D, technology and building a channel partner network for faster growth across the 1.5 million addressable school market in the country,” he added.

[caption id="attachment_126012" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Students in SRJNA's Innovation Lab[/caption]

Speaking on the development, Ragini Bajaj Chaudhary, India CEO, Gray Matters Capital, said, “Start-ups like SRJNA have understood the importance of scientific temper and cultivating the spirit of curiosity, creativity and imagination among young minds – which sow the seeds for future innovations. We would like more girls to get interested in STEM to bridge the gender gap and believe that there is a link between imparting STEM concepts in an experiential manner to improvements in learning outcomes. Our funding of SRJNA is a step to make a difference to the lives of over 250 million school students.”

Throwing light on the investment rationale, Smita Sircar, Innovations Director – edLABS and Ecosystem Development said, “We met the team last year and have been tracking the progress since then. SRJNA scores high on innovation quotient as it takes STEM experiential learning into classrooms; has a robust value-chain for delivery and has shown traction in scaling its revenue. It also aligns with our ecosystem work to enable 21 century relevant learning environments in schools and SRJNA does so via tiered pricing and product structure to cater to the broad spectrum of demand in the market.” 

Fostering Innovation and Creativity through Tinkering

SRJNA sells its STEM kits directly to schools and has facilitated the set-up of its labs in 100+ schools benefitting 50,000+ students and 1000+ teachers across 26 cities in 15 states.

[caption id="attachment_126011" align="aligncenter" width="700"] SRJNA's Tinkering Lab[/caption]

STEM Education is key to any nation's success in 21st century especially Interactive Learning. With the Government of India’s NITI Ayog announcing the set up of 30,000 innovation play workspaces in the form of Atal Tinkering Labs (ATL) for students in grades 8 to 12 in the next 3 years, SRJNA is well placed to benefit from the Government’s flagship program Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) with its dedicated studio labs it sets up in schools to transform ideas into reality via 3D printing, Robotics, IOT, as well as through mechanical and electrical tools in STEM Tinkering Kits.

Besides the Tinkering Labs, SRJNA also facilitates experiential learning of STEM concepts in K10 classrooms through its Innovation Labs comprising teaching aids and student assessments over an online platform. It adopts a 5 dimensional learning approach of seeing, touching, feeling, understanding and performing which help students see the concepts taught by the teacher function in real-time in the classroom.

“Keiretsu Forum seeks to back promising entrepreneurs with ‘smart money,’ where the network’s members open many doors to portfolio companies, and SRJNA is an example where we’ve been able to add considerable value in addition to the money our members invested,” said Denny Kurien, President & CEO of Keiretsu Forum. Keiretsu investors who threw their weight behind SRJNA included Dr. Sushil Vachani, former director of IIM Bangalore and Chand Das, former CEO of ITC’s education business.

“Our Investors Personally observed the passion and fire in founders’ thinking and vision for future of education in India. Their founding team, toolkits and success with their initial customer base was instrumental in our decision to participate in this round to enable their next stage of growth. Our Investors wanted to participate and contribute to system that helped us succeed in life” quoted Vikrant Varshney, Managing Partner of SucSEED Venture Partners.

SRJNA has also been selected by Govt. of Rajasthan under itsiStart initiative and is among the seven start-ups in the state to be funded through its Bhamashah Techno Fund in June this year.

Recent Investments by Gray Matters Capital

Gray Matter Capital has recently shortlisted eight participating startup organizations in the first cohort of its accelerator program – GMC Calibrator that was launched earlier in April this year.

In February, Chrysalis, a Chennai-based education reform startup raised a pre-series A funding round from Gray Matters Capital as well.

In the same month, Bengaluru based edtech startup IMAX Program raised $13.5 million from the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, LGT Impact Ventures and existing investor Aspada.

B2B E-Commerce Platform Wholesalebox Raises Funding from Rajasthan VC Fund

Jaipur-based B2B wholesale e-commerce venture Wholesalebox has raised undisclosed amount from Rajasthan Venture Capital Fund (RVCF). Existing investors including Orios Venture Partners and Contrarian Drishti Partners also participated in the round.

The funds raised will be used by the startup to expand its operations to new markets across the country.

Earlier in November 2016, the startup had raised $2 million from a group of institutional investors and marquee angels -- Orios Venture Partners Contrarian Vriddhi Fund, and Manish Maheshwari, CEO of Network 18 Digital.

Founded in 2015 by Chandan Agarwal, Madhur Bhaiya, Rakesh Shekhawat and Rohit Dangayach, Wholesalebox is an e-commerce portal for traditional shopkeepers to buy directly from manufactures bypassing the wholesalers and traders. Through its platform, traditional brick-n-mortar shopkeepers can buy apparel, fashion jewellery and home furnishing products directly at factory prices, without any travel, hence lowering purchase rates by 25-30% while adding to convenience.

The company, which is currently operational in Gujarat and Rajasthan, aims to empower the retailers with technology to help them cut costs, save time, increase revenue and improve their customer experience, with the help of technology solutions using data analytics.

Managed by Rajasthan Asset Management Co. Pvt. Ltd , RCVF is Rajasthan's first VC fund that has been operational since 2002 and invests in seed, early, and mid-stage companies. Currently investing out of its third fund, it is focused on industries in healthcare, food processing, logistics, IT/ITES, and education sectors. One of its popular investment include travel website Yatra.com

“There is a huge opportunity in terms of business growth using technology in the highly unorganized and fragmented wholesale apparel market,”, said K Ganapathy Subramanian, chief executive of RVCF.

Last month, RCV has invested in the Jaipur-based Wooden Street, an online custom furniture store. Prior to this, RVCF had invested undisclosed amount in Direct Create Private Limited, an online and offline e-commerce platform, in January 2017.

[Top Image - YouStory.com]

B2B E-Commerce Platform Wholesalebox Raises Funding from Rajasthan VC Fund

Jaipur-based B2B wholesale e-commerce venture Wholesalebox has raised undisclosed amount from Rajasthan Venture Capital Fund (RVCF). Existing investors including Orios Venture Partners and Contrarian Drishti Partners also participated in the round.

The funds raised will be used by the startup to expand its operations to new markets across the country.

Earlier in November 2016, the startup had raised $2 million from a group of institutional investors and marquee angels -- Orios Venture Partners Contrarian Vriddhi Fund, and Manish Maheshwari, CEO of Network 18 Digital.

Founded in 2015 by Chandan Agarwal, Madhur Bhaiya, Rakesh Shekhawat and Rohit Dangayach, Wholesalebox is an e-commerce portal for traditional shopkeepers to buy directly from manufactures bypassing the wholesalers and traders. Through its platform, traditional brick-n-mortar shopkeepers can buy apparel, fashion jewellery and home furnishing products directly at factory prices, without any travel, hence lowering purchase rates by 25-30% while adding to convenience.

The company, which is currently operational in Gujarat and Rajasthan, aims to empower the retailers with technology to help them cut costs, save time, increase revenue and improve their customer experience, with the help of technology solutions using data analytics.

Managed by Rajasthan Asset Management Co. Pvt. Ltd , RCVF is Rajasthan's first VC fund that has been operational since 2002 and invests in seed, early, and mid-stage companies. Currently investing out of its third fund, it is focused on industries in healthcare, food processing, logistics, IT/ITES, and education sectors. One of its popular investment include travel website Yatra.com

“There is a huge opportunity in terms of business growth using technology in the highly unorganized and fragmented wholesale apparel market,”, said K Ganapathy Subramanian, chief executive of RVCF.

Last month, RCV has invested in the Jaipur-based Wooden Street, an online custom furniture store. Prior to this, RVCF had invested undisclosed amount in Direct Create Private Limited, an online and offline e-commerce platform, in January 2017.

[Top Image - YouStory.com]

Jaipur-based Augmented Reality Startup To Change The Way Consumers Interact With Print

Technology has completely revamped the way the world of news functions nowadays. With the Internet in our hands, on our smartphones, our tabs, the print medium has taken a major hit. Seeing this, the newspapers decided to make a move into the online medium as well, but the profitability that came with a paying newspaper readership has now become a thing of the past.

More and more people are now preferring mobile news over physical newspapers. Seeing the readers making the switch, the advertisers are even switching to Google adverts for cheaper options. It won't be wrong to say, that the newspapers might be looking towards a path of extinction in the coming few years. But RAMS Creative Technologies, a small tech start-up based out of Jaipur, has something up its alley which could help in bringing them back into action.

The startup has conceived YeppAR, an augmented reality application with an aim of changing newspapers forever. Viewing a newspaper through the app instantly brings the story to life. All the related news stories pops off the page giving the user the option to browse through them. The app ends up solving the limited space problem with the print medium. Not only this, YeppAR also allows the user to link to stories a media organisation has produced after the actual issue has gone to print. This particular function can prove to be of great relevance for media organisations having both online and print platforms. These organisations can leverage their up-to-dats online news pieces to keep fuelling their print business, while consequently also driving-in traffic to their websites through their magazines and newspapers.

While many people read newspapers everyday, but in order to do more research or get more current information on the matter, they are forced to access television or the internet. Hence, in order to get a complete picture of an issue, one has to go through a number of mediums. YeppAR puts an end to all this and brings everything under one single umbrella.

How YeppAR works?

Whenever a document linked with YeppAR is viewed through the app, it comes alive on the user's smartphone. This can be through 3D visuals, more images, videos, and more information about the content of the document. The app basically ends up enhancing the know-how about any incident or event that’s printed in the newspaper with the app enabled logo.

YeppAR for Newspapers

Along with retaining the readership of the newspapers, YeppAR can end up winning and bringing back advertisers interest into newspapers. The app ends up wholly revamping the dry and static print ads and makes them more interesting and engaging. For example, with the app, a simple print ad of a movie ends up becoming a playable trailer of that particular movie. Not only this, the ad can also be linked to a ticket booking site, which would give newspapers a chance to generate money from both movie makers as well as the ticket booking websites.

The startup has recently partnered with Jaipur edition of Dainik Bhaskar, a Hindi news daily, for pilot of what AR can do to print content.

YeppAR for Restaurants

Restaurants can incorporate the augmented reality app in their menus in order to make the experience better for its diners. Using YeppAR, an ordinary looking food menu can be used by the restaurant to give out information like 3D images of the dish, serving portions, ingredients, accompaniments, videos of the dish being made and reviews of previous diners. All this can help the diners make their choice faster.

According to Rahul Mangal and Ankush Sharma, the Founder and the CEO of YeppAr app respectively, technology is the only solution to elate the experience of the customers and make them more aware about each cuisine on the menu. The app has already collaborated with a number of renowned restaurants in Jaipur.

While currently only dealing with newspapers and restaurants, the app does have plans to cover more industries like, education, health, retail etc. in the near future. Their mission is to instill in people the habit of scanning anything for information, the way they type and search on Google.

Jaipur-based Augmented Reality Startup To Change The Way Consumers Interact With Print

Technology has completely revamped the way the world of news functions nowadays. With the Internet in our hands, on our smartphones, our tabs, the print medium has taken a major hit. Seeing this, the newspapers decided to make a move into the online medium as well, but the profitability that came with a paying newspaper readership has now become a thing of the past.

More and more people are now preferring mobile news over physical newspapers. Seeing the readers making the switch, the advertisers are even switching to Google adverts for cheaper options. It won't be wrong to say, that the newspapers might be looking towards a path of extinction in the coming few years. But RAMS Creative Technologies, a small tech start-up based out of Jaipur, has something up its alley which could help in bringing them back into action.

The startup has conceived YeppAR, an augmented reality application with an aim of changing newspapers forever. Viewing a newspaper through the app instantly brings the story to life. All the related news stories pops off the page giving the user the option to browse through them. The app ends up solving the limited space problem with the print medium. Not only this, YeppAR also allows the user to link to stories a media organisation has produced after the actual issue has gone to print. This particular function can prove to be of great relevance for media organisations having both online and print platforms. These organisations can leverage their up-to-dats online news pieces to keep fuelling their print business, while consequently also driving-in traffic to their websites through their magazines and newspapers.

While many people read newspapers everyday, but in order to do more research or get more current information on the matter, they are forced to access television or the internet. Hence, in order to get a complete picture of an issue, one has to go through a number of mediums. YeppAR puts an end to all this and brings everything under one single umbrella.

How YeppAR works?

Whenever a document linked with YeppAR is viewed through the app, it comes alive on the user's smartphone. This can be through 3D visuals, more images, videos, and more information about the content of the document. The app basically ends up enhancing the know-how about any incident or event that’s printed in the newspaper with the app enabled logo.

YeppAR for Newspapers

Along with retaining the readership of the newspapers, YeppAR can end up winning and bringing back advertisers interest into newspapers. The app ends up wholly revamping the dry and static print ads and makes them more interesting and engaging. For example, with the app, a simple print ad of a movie ends up becoming a playable trailer of that particular movie. Not only this, the ad can also be linked to a ticket booking site, which would give newspapers a chance to generate money from both movie makers as well as the ticket booking websites.

The startup has recently partnered with Jaipur edition of Dainik Bhaskar, a Hindi news daily, for pilot of what AR can do to print content.

YeppAR for Restaurants

Restaurants can incorporate the augmented reality app in their menus in order to make the experience better for its diners. Using YeppAR, an ordinary looking food menu can be used by the restaurant to give out information like 3D images of the dish, serving portions, ingredients, accompaniments, videos of the dish being made and reviews of previous diners. All this can help the diners make their choice faster.

According to Rahul Mangal and Ankush Sharma, the Founder and the CEO of YeppAr app respectively, technology is the only solution to elate the experience of the customers and make them more aware about each cuisine on the menu. The app has already collaborated with a number of renowned restaurants in Jaipur.

While currently only dealing with newspapers and restaurants, the app does have plans to cover more industries like, education, health, retail etc. in the near future. Their mission is to instill in people the habit of scanning anything for information, the way they type and search on Google.

Jaipur-Based Voylla India’s First Omni-Channel Platform Deals In Exclusive Jewellery For Everyone

Indian jewelry has acquired an international fan base over the years. Its unique designs, cuts, a character of its own and a story behind each piece, makes Indian jewellery standout from the rest. But, the only thing that somewhere acts as a deal breaker are the concerns over quality as there is majorly no consistency in the local artisans’ jewelry.

Headquartered in Jaipur, Voylla aspires to iron out this basic issue related to the Indian jewelry sector by providing skilled craftsmen and talented designers a platform to showcase their commendable jewelry talent to the world.

Founded in the year 2012, the platform has innovative designs and high quality as its two pillars of strength. This is clearly depicted in its vast portfolio of more than 10,000 products with 35,000 unique designs. The startup adds around 500 new designs every week so as to keep itself in sync with the changing times and trends.

Voylla, inspired from the french word ‘Voila!’ meaning to suggest an appearance like its magic, follows an omnichannel model. It therefore has 13 offline stores in India and is the only fashion jewelry website which is listed internationally on ecommerce giant Amazon.

Journey So Far

With a humble beginning from an office set up at Jaipur in the year 2012 and an initial funding of Rs 20 lacs, the company has grown by leaps and bounds in just 3 years.

Company has already witnessed a great traction with the launch of its Match the Dress app across the country. The app acts as a virtual assistant by helping buyers make purchases at a shorter time duration while ensuring a great browsing experience.

Technology acquires a central point in the operations of Voylla. In fact, the startup has its own in-house developed ERP system to efficiently manage its complex manufacturing process to retail in various formats. Further, in order to make it easier for people to choose the best matching accessory for their outfits, the startup has designed its own "Match the dress" App.

Currently functioning on Angel Funding. The initial funding in the startup was done by Leopard Ventures. Last October saw Peepul Capital investing a whopping $15 million in the company. Voylla also roped in B-Town diva Kangana Ranaut as its brand ambassador recently.

The Founders

Voylla is a brainchild of the co-founders Vishwas Shringi and Jagrati Shringi. Vishwas Shringi, an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University, looks after Strategy, Branding, and Business Development profiles at Voylla. Jagrati, on the other hand, is a MS from University of Pittsburgh and handles the Technology, Public Relations and Online Marketing departments at the startup. They are both backed with a core team that comes with decades of experience in retail, finance, technology, and marketing.

Future Plans

As far as future plans of the startup are concerned, the startup is gearing up to open more retail destinations pan India by the year 2016-17. Having a footprint across select MBOs like Central, they are currently in aggressive talks with Pantaloons, Reliance etc.

The fashion jewellery market in India is highly fragmented and the market size is estimated at USD 2.4 Billion. The growth rate for Fashion Jewellery is forecast to be higher than that of Precious Jewellery at 22% CAGR in the next 3 years.

Jaipur-Based Voylla India’s First Omni-Channel Platform Deals In Exclusive Jewellery For Everyone

Indian jewelry has acquired an international fan base over the years. Its unique designs, cuts, a character of its own and a story behind each piece, makes Indian jewellery standout from the rest. But, the only thing that somewhere acts as a deal breaker are the concerns over quality as there is majorly no consistency in the local artisans’ jewelry.

Headquartered in Jaipur, Voylla aspires to iron out this basic issue related to the Indian jewelry sector by providing skilled craftsmen and talented designers a platform to showcase their commendable jewelry talent to the world.

Founded in the year 2012, the platform has innovative designs and high quality as its two pillars of strength. This is clearly depicted in its vast portfolio of more than 10,000 products with 35,000 unique designs. The startup adds around 500 new designs every week so as to keep itself in sync with the changing times and trends.

Voylla, inspired from the french word ‘Voila!’ meaning to suggest an appearance like its magic, follows an omnichannel model. It therefore has 13 offline stores in India and is the only fashion jewelry website which is listed internationally on ecommerce giant Amazon.

Journey So Far

With a humble beginning from an office set up at Jaipur in the year 2012 and an initial funding of Rs 20 lacs, the company has grown by leaps and bounds in just 3 years.

Company has already witnessed a great traction with the launch of its Match the Dress app across the country. The app acts as a virtual assistant by helping buyers make purchases at a shorter time duration while ensuring a great browsing experience.

Technology acquires a central point in the operations of Voylla. In fact, the startup has its own in-house developed ERP system to efficiently manage its complex manufacturing process to retail in various formats. Further, in order to make it easier for people to choose the best matching accessory for their outfits, the startup has designed its own "Match the dress" App.

Currently functioning on Angel Funding. The initial funding in the startup was done by Leopard Ventures. Last October saw Peepul Capital investing a whopping $15 million in the company. Voylla also roped in B-Town diva Kangana Ranaut as its brand ambassador recently.

The Founders

Voylla is a brainchild of the co-founders Vishwas Shringi and Jagrati Shringi. Vishwas Shringi, an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University, looks after Strategy, Branding, and Business Development profiles at Voylla. Jagrati, on the other hand, is a MS from University of Pittsburgh and handles the Technology, Public Relations and Online Marketing departments at the startup. They are both backed with a core team that comes with decades of experience in retail, finance, technology, and marketing.

Future Plans

As far as future plans of the startup are concerned, the startup is gearing up to open more retail destinations pan India by the year 2016-17. Having a footprint across select MBOs like Central, they are currently in aggressive talks with Pantaloons, Reliance etc.

The fashion jewellery market in India is highly fragmented and the market size is estimated at USD 2.4 Billion. The growth rate for Fashion Jewellery is forecast to be higher than that of Precious Jewellery at 22% CAGR in the next 3 years.

Jaipur - A New Buzz in Startup Ecosystem of India

According to Nasscom, India ranks third in global startup ecosystem with more than 4,200 novel companies. The Indian Startup Ecosystem is thriving and has reached to the heritage panorama, the 'Pink City', Jaipur. While India is well-known for its brains and multiple skilled individuals, Jaipur is the new destination of Angel Investors and venture capitalists. They find the city brimming with enthusiastic people and youngsters who are introducing brilliant concepts in technology, mobile development, E-commerce and serving the society.

Cardekho.com, RazorPay, CultureAlley, TaazaSabzi, HippoCabs, Houssup, Streetjumper, Intellipaat, LogicRoots- what's common among all of them? They all originate from the capital of Rajasthan, and the list is comprehensive. The Ratan Tata empowered auto portal listing company, CarDekho (initiated by Girnar Soft in 2007) raised $65 Million expanding to new ventures - BikeDekho, PriceDekho. The company provides a wonderful platform to all those auto buffs as they can gain latest insights into car features, its prices and other specifications.

Having around more than 40 startups under process, Jaipur is receiving the attention of potential angels who are currently powering up the Indian giants, Flipkart and Ola. Razorpay has become the second-largest startup, revolutionizing online payments by offering a simple, cost-effective and secure payment gateway to startups, small business groups, schools and institutes. It is, in fact, listed among the ones chosen by Y Combinator, an American seed fund investor. RazorPay also is excellently motivated and backed up by Startup Oasis - an incubator set up by Rajasthan Industrial Investment Corporation (RIICO).

Besides establishing its name in e-commerce and comparison platforms, the city is bringing learning to people instead of people to learning with the origin of Intellipaat Software Solutions Pvt. Ltd. Within four years (since its inception in 2011), this Jaipur-based e-Learning provider has developed to the ever-evolving community of 250,000 learners and more than 40 corporate clients including Cisco, Genpact, Wipro, TCS and others. Intellipaat aims at providing high-quality, online learning to students and professionals all across the globe in top niche technologies and business platforms like Big Data, Hadoop, Business Intelligence, Data Science, Programming, Web Development, Database, Digital Marketing and many others.

HippoCabs is again a relaxing, luxury shared cab service on the route of Jaipur and Delhi (capital of India). You can choose your ride from an array of timings and enjoy an affordable drive to the destination.

It is impressive to know that the Silicon-Valley Founder Institute is soon going to launch its division in Jaipur. Many incubators and mentors have lately observed that the state of entrepreneurship has showed a rapid transformation in the city over the last three years. Jaipur consumers find them more trustworthy, and even fresh graduates and experienced professionals out here are favoring startups for employment.

Rajasthan Venture Capital Fund (RVCF) has signed an agreement with Startup Oasis and CIIE to dedicate 10% of its Rs 500 crore third fund for the startups. Jaipur now owns the largest IT SEZ in the country. A home to many engineering colleges, this place is becoming a hub of successful entrepreneurships.

The very reasons why investors and individuals are confident about Jaipur is because of easy commutation from one location to another without any aggressive traffic race like we have in the cities of Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Bangalore . Further, the beautiful city design gains people's attention and relatively lowers startup costs is the key factor. To be sure, Jaipur is expected to institute more than ten startups this year.

EarlyByte Wants To Be India's ProductHunt Or Betalist Focussing Just Indian Product Startups

If you're not able to market your product/startup to the right audience then it really doesn't matter if you have the best quality or features on offer in the market. In this highly competitive market, being visible and being able to market your product well is all you need to survive nowadays. So, in order to help those early stage startups dealing with their initial marketing hiccups is a Jaipur based startup called EarlyByte.

EarlyByte gives a curated overview of the early stage Indian startups. It helps young entrepreneurs show off their startup to an audience of early adopters and receive their valuable feedback on the products and services offered.

EarlyByte is essentially a place for early adopters to share and geek out about the latest mobile apps, websites, hardware projects, and tech-creations.

With the Indian startup industry booming like never before, a new startup is being launched almost every day. But, the bad news is that most of these startups aren't able to survive the initial few months and die an untimely death as they're not able to target and captivate their right audience. This where EarlyByte comes to picture. Since the platform's audience consists of early adopters, startup founders & other entrepreneurs coming to the website only to sign up for new services, this makes it "the" platform to advertise for new product or services. In addition to this, getting featured on their site is absolutely free of cost.



EarlyByte's main competitors are International companies like Beta list and Product hunt. These international companies have international audiences too but the main thing that makes EarlyByte score against them is that the startup's main audience are Indians who are the main focus of any Indian startup in the initial stages.

The currently Bootstrapped startup is the product of the geniuses of an IIT Roorkee Computer Science and Engineering graduate, Anshul Garg.

"Indian Startups can get publicity with Product hunt and BetaList but they don't get potential customers. Also It would be bizarre if any early-stage Indian startup decides to pay for example $999 for advertising on them for -
2 weeks site ads, 2 weeks newsletter ads or 2 tweets for audience who are not even their potential customer." says Anshul. EarlyByte's main audience are Indians which are the main focus of any Indian Startups in their initial days, he added