XpressBees, an Indian logistics startup company that has been working with various e-commerce platforms in the country, gave a statement recently that it raised $110 million in a recent financing round as online shopping expands in the world’s second-largest internet market.
XpressBees is a Pune-based logistics startup, it has raised $110 million funding in a funding round led by private firms Investcorp, Gaja Capital, and Norwest Venture Partners. It is a 5 year old startup that has managed to raise $175.8 million to date, according to a research done by Tracxn. The last round of Series E funding valued the startup at more than $350 million. A Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba has been a noticeable name in initial rounds of investment in XpressBees.
XpressBees has helped more than 1,000 users deliver their products across the country. Their portfolio consists of Paytm, Lenskart, Meesho, NetMeds, Snapdeal, etc. XpressBees has expanded in more than 2,000 cities and towns, and it disposes of over 2.5 million orders per day- increased from around 600,000 orders per day last year.
The logistics startup has plans to expand its hubs and leave footprints over the whole country.
“XpressBees plans to use the new capital to rapidly expand its delivery network from about 12,000 pin codes across the country to over 20,000 before the start of sale season in 2020.”
-Amitava Saha, Co-founder and CEO, XpressBees
Saha also said XpressBees views this as an opportunity to help conventional retailers and consumer brands to trade their products online. “The area that we want to focus on is omnichannel because we understand that well, given that we came out of FirstCry (which has a network of 400 stores besides e-commerce sales). We want to help companies to do both business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-business (B2B) deliveries from the same stock or warehouse,” he said.
The company also plans to provide a premium service with significance to technology. “I am delighted to see the impact we are making in the logistics ecosystem in the country,” further added Saha. The new-age technology-led logistics startups like XpressBees will continue to play a vital part in the growth of the e-commerce sector in the country.
E-commerce sales account for less than 5% of the entire retail sales in our country has shot up in the lockdown during the COVID-19 global pandemic. A record surge in the sales of Amazon India and Flipkart has been reported by the companies during their festival sales the previous month. These firms have generated over 150,000 seasonal jobs to shelter the expanding demand for orders. XpressBees alone works with more than 30,000 delivery staff. It competes with several already established firms like Delhivery and Ecom Express.
Delhivery is the top competitor of XpressBees founded in 2011 in Gurugram, Haryana. It competes in the courier, logistics, and freight services. It generates 854% of the revenue that XpressBees generates. Delhivery became India’s first unicorn in the technology space, leaving enough space for other startups like XpressBees in the e-commerce logistics industry.
What Exactly is the Logistics Industry?
Logistics actually plays several roles in the e-commerce sector. It includes transportation, delivery, storage, distribution processing, storage, information processing, cargo handling, packaging, and much more. Before the invasion of IT in logistics, it was doing well, although since companies have tied up IT with logistics, it has become easier and quicker to sort through the demands of this particular industry.
Information Technology is nothing but processing the data via computer, the practice of distributing and processing information through computer, electronics, and other digital platforms. That being said, IT is not merely limited to computers. The IT industry is speedily moving from computers to other assemblies of mobile technology.
How does IT Play a Huge Role in Logistics?
Logistics is mainly concerned with the flow of information and products between its delivery staff and customers. The development in technology allows this industry to easily avail the information and pass it on to the respective people. IT helps with the coordination of activities to manage the industry. Due to the increase in the rate of technologies, the cost of information decreased.
How can IT be Applied in Logistics?
Electronic Commerce:
Electronic Commerce is when a wide range of techniques and tools are used to operate business in a paperless environment. It consists of electronic data interchange, electronic fund transfers, e-mails, optical data capture. Companies can automate the process of paperwork electronically between customers and suppliers.
Data Warehouse:
It is a centralized database managed independently from the firm’s production system database. Most firms have more than one database. Data that is held in a data warehouse is dependent on time.
ERP Tools:
All companies now see enterprise resource planning tools as the basis of their IT infrastructure. They accomplish a high level of assimilation by employing a single data model, establishing a mutual understanding of what the shared data depicts and creates a set of rules for the use of said data.
What are the Benefits of IT in Logistics?
- Establishes effective communication and collaboration
- Connects the dots between the demand of your customers and your services
- Chooses the plan that leverages your assets the most
- Transforms the process within the warehouse to meet the demands of your customers
- Gives you a better understanding of your labor activities and carries out the changes needed to increase work performance
- Maximizes profits by using advanced invoicing abilities
- Enhances the day to day fleet conduct to lower costs and boost customer satisfaction
New technologies are shaping the world today. No sector is free from its intrusion, in the best way possible. The logistics industry has adopted IT for better results too. A clear vision and technical insight is necessary to make sure that the logistics department is maximizing its Internet potential like XpressBees. E-commerce companies must realize that they need to leverage the power that technology holds, this means using the upcoming breed of IT.
If you intend to build a clone app like XpressBees, now is the best time to do. Connect soon with our experts here at Cypherox to get a head start.
