Zepto (company)
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| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Q-commerce |
| Founded | July 2021 |
| Headquarters | , India |
Number of locations | 200 stores (2023) |
Key people | |
| Services | Online grocer |
| Revenue |  ₹2,024 crore (US$240 million) (FY23)[1] |
 ₹−1,272 crore (US$−150 million) (FY23) | |
| Website | zeptonow |
Zepto is an Indian Q-commerce company focused on grocery. It was founded in July 2021 by Aadit Palicha and Kaivalya Vohra. The company is based out of Mumbai and operates over 200 dark-stores across ten metropolitan areas in India.[2]
History
Aadit Palicha started Zepto with Kaivalya Vohra in 2020 when they were 17 years old.[3][4] Palicha and Vohra skipped college to start Zepto, instead raising capital from Contrary, which offered to invest if they dropped out of Stanford University.[5][6]
Palicha and Vohra originally branded the company as KiranaKart and focused on facilitating grocery delivery by partnering with local kirana stores, but that approach did not gain traction.[7] They also participated in Y Combinator's accelerator program while building out the first version of the platform.[8]
Business
In 2021, the company rebranded to Zepto and verticalized the operation, building a network of dark stores to fulfill orders. In April 2022, Zepto launched Cafe, a division focused on delivery of coffee and ready-to-eat food.[9] In February 2023, the company launched Bloom, a platform for farmers to manage food production and distribute goods from villages to cities.[10]
Zepto and other major delivery platforms including Zomato, Blinkit, and Swiggy employ over 3 million gig workers.
The company began a paid membership program in February 2024[11], which has over 4 million subscribers as of April 2024.[12]
Funding
Zepto has raised $560 million. The company measures its capital in US dollars rather than Indian Rupees. Other notable investors include Jim Breyer, Lachy Groom, and Global Founders Capital.[13] Zepto was India's first Unicorn (finance) of 2023, and one of two companies to be valued over $1 billion that year.[14]
| Round | Size | Valuation | Lead Investor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seed[15][16] | $730,000 | $2.5 million | Contrary |
| Series A | undisclosed | undisclosed | Nexus Venture Partners |
| Series B[17] | $60 million | $225 million | Glade Brook Capital |
| Series C[18] | $100 million | $570 million | Y Combinator |
| Series D[19] | $200 million | $900 million | Y Combinator |
| Series E[20][14] | $200 million | $1.4 billion | StepStone Group |
References
- ^ "Zepto's revenue grows 14X to Rs 2,024 Cr in FY23, losses up by 3X". Entrackr. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
- ^ "Many of Zepto's dark stores now profitable; co announces leadership changes". The Times of India. 2023-05-31. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2023-08-03.
- ^ "As Indians expect groceries in 10 mins, delivery agents struggle". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
- ^ "Y Combinator-backed Zepto launches 10-minute food delivery service 'Cafe' in Mumbai". Moneycontrol. 18 April 2022. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
- ^ Hernbroth, Megan. "One Silicon Valley venture firm will invest up to $100,000 in startups founded by college students taking a gap year to become entrepreneurs". Business Insider. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
- ^ "Stanford dropouts raise $60 million for grocery startup Zepto". Yahoo Finance. 2021-11-11. Retrieved 2023-08-03.
- ^ Li, Steven. "They Raised $360 Million After Dropping Out Of Stanford And Built Grocery Delivery App Zepto, Now Worth $900 Million". Forbes. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
- ^ Singh, Manish (2021-10-31). "India's Zepto raises $60M for its 10 minute grocery delivery app". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2023-08-03.
- ^ "Zepto unveils 10-minute food delivery service 'Cafe' in Mumbai: All you need to know". Zee News. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
- ^ "Zepto's engagement programme, Zepto Bloom for farmers launched'". Financialexpress. 2023-02-13. Retrieved 2023-08-03.
- ^ Saha, Soumyajit (2024-02-29). "Zepto launches membership programme for all users". The Economic Times. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
- ^ "x.com". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 2024-06-07.
- ^ Singh, Manish (2021-12-20). "Zepto, a 10-minute grocery delivery app in India, raises $100 million". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2023-08-03.
- ^ a b Sriram, M.; Sriram, M. (2023-08-25). "Zepto raises $200 million at $1.4 billion valuation, becomes first Indian unicorn in nearly a year". Reuters. Retrieved 2023-08-26.
- ^ "How two 19-year-old Stanford dropouts founded Zepto". Business Today. 2021-11-12. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
- ^ "x.com". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 2024-06-07.
- ^ Singh, Manish (2021-10-31). "India's Zepto raises $60M for its 10 minute grocery delivery app". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
- ^ Singh, Manish (2021-12-20). "Zepto, a 10-minute grocery delivery app in India, raises $100 million". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
- ^ Singh, Manish (2022-05-02). "Zepto, a 10-minute grocery delivery app, raises $200 million". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
- ^ Cornish, Chloe (2023-08-25). "India's first 'unicorn' of 2023 boosts tech sector's hopes of funding revival". Financial Times. Retrieved 2023-08-26.