Udaan co-founder Sujeet Kumar on ambitions in a post-pandemic world

How did Udaan manage not only to sustain itself but also grow in spite of the pandemic disruption? What adjustments did it have to make? What is the B2B e-commerce retailer’s next big target? Is it planning to add new segments and areas? And what about taking the model to other countries? Udaan co-founder Sujeet Kumar answers these and more questions in an exclusive interview with Business Standard’s Surajeet Das Gupta. Highlights of the Q&A:

How have you tweaked your strategy to overcome challenges in a post-pandemic economy?

·Digitising retail businesses

·Revamp backend – Supply chain and logistics

·Ramp up capacities – Warehousing and transportation

·Strategic change – From marketplace to retailer-model

·Learn and overcome region-specific challenges

Can you share with us some of the numbers in terms of your warehouses and capacities, how you were planning earlier and how much you have increased now?

·Increased space: From 1.5 mn sq ft to 10 mn sq ft

·Increased volume: From 2,000 tonnes to 8,000 tonnes

·32 centres to sort consignments and routes

·More than 200 warehouses across the country

·Reached around 3.5 mn retailers

·2 mn retailers buying from its platform

·Served 900 cities in India

What is your target in the next two years?

·Aim to reach 25 mn to 30 mn retailers

·Around Rs 4.5 mn relevant retailers

You have competitions from Geo Mart, Metro, and now also Amazon with a similar model. How do you differentiate from them?

·Solve customer needs with technology

·Achieve economy of scale

·Build capabilities

Are you looking at replicating your model in other countries?

·India is the primary focus

·Business model validated in Bangladesh, Vietnam, Indonesia, Nigeria etc

·No immediate plans to explore newer geographies  

When do you plan to raise funds next?

·No fixed timeline for the next round of fundraising

·Fundraising likely after two to three quarters