Multi-category packaging services provider Bizongo is in the process of raising fresh funds to finance ramping up of technology and product offerings as it targets fourfold jump in turnover to around Rs 1,600 crore by the next financial year, according to a top company official.
The Mumbai-based firm is betting on food delivery and e-commerce business to be among major growth drivers besides retail and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sectors, according to Bizongo Chief Executive Officer and co-founder Aniket Deb.
The company provides end-to-end automated packaging design, development, procurement and artwork solutions to its clients across industries such as FMCG, food, retail, consumer durables, supply chain and e-commerce.
"The Indian packaging industry is a USD 72-billion market currently and is growing at a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 16 per cent. Bizongo is in the right place to leverage this huge opportunity as packaging is inextricably linked to India's consumption growth story," Deb told PTI.
People are buying more branded goods both online and offline, ordering more takeaways even in smaller cities and towns which means these segments will need more packaging, he added.
Elaborating on the company's plans to tap the opportunity, he said, "Our next big bet is the food delivery and e-commerce business which is growing at 31 per cent and 32 per cent, year-on-year, respectively. Retail and FMCG are the two other areas with huge growth potential."
The plans is, he said, to increase the company's footprint by bringing in more delivery pin codes but added Bizongo does not want to lose sight of serviceability.
"We believe our efforts will see an increase in the number of clients," Deb said.
Bizongo's current clients include Amazon India, Tata Cliq, Sesa Care, FirstCry, Curefit, Myntra, Flipkart, MI, Bunge, Agarwal Packers and Movers Ltd, Liso Chocolatier, Godrej Interio, Reliance Retail, Godrej Tyson, Johnson & Johnson.
Deb said the company currently has a "revenue run rate" of Rs 400 crore and "we expect to approximately grow around 4 times in the next financial year".
When asked if the company is looking to raise fresh funds, he said, "Bizongo's Series-C fundraising process is still on" but declined to share details.
So far, the company has up to USD 22 million through two rounds of funding. Its investors include Accel, Chiratae Ventures (formerly known as IDG Ventures), Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin's venture capital firm B Capital and World Bank's investment arm International Finance Corporation.
When asked where the funds would be deployed, he said it will be "in ramping up our tech and product offerings. We will also invest in our flagship product ProcureLive. This will help in on-boarding more clients and give us the bandwidth to curate more sellers on the platform which is crucial to our expansion plans".
In terms of manpower addition in line with the expansion, Deb said, "Bizongo currently has 554 employees on its rolls and we would increase it to 700-800 to match our expanded operations. One of the major focus areas is to bolster our technology/suite of products that we offer to our customers and partner sellers.
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