Tech-enabled chain of laundry and home cleaning stores UClean Tuesday said it will invest USD 1 million over the next two years and open more than 10 franchisee-led stores as it plans to expands operations to Thailand by the end of this year.
UClean had started its international expansion earlier this year with signing franchisees in Bangladesh and Nepal, a statement said.
"UClean plans to march forward with its expansion plans by expanding into Thailand by the end of December. As per Statista, the home and laundry care market in Thailand is currently about USD 2 billion annually dominated largely by the unorganised players," it added.
In the first year of its operations in Thailand, the company aims to serve over 5,000 customers across multiple cities. The company is also looking at signing franchisees and setting up its first store in Bangkok. It will hire an operations team locally for its stores in Thailand.
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* Spotify launches Spotify Lite in India
Music streaming app Spotify Tuesday said it has launched a 'Lite' version that occupies less space on phone and allows setting limits on data usage.
Spotify Lite is a small application of 10 MB and offers the same listening experience as that of the main Spotify app, allowing users to discover and play millions of songs, the company said in a statement.
Lite is available on all Android phones running version 4.3 (Jellybean) or higher, it added.
"We announced the availability of Spotify Lite Beta in India a couple of months ago to gauge user interest, which was high. Spotify Lite is now out of test mode, and available as an app for all users in the country," Spotify India Managing Director Amarjit Singh Batra said.
He added that the Lite app will make millions of free songs more accessible to users who may have an older mobile device, limited storage on their phones, are in poor internet connectivity areas.
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* Former Apple India exec launches Sofyx
Former Apple India Country Manager Sanjay Kaul has set up a new venture 'Sofyx', a social commerce platform for general traders dealing in smartphones and accessories.
"Sofyx bridges the gap and brings together the mobile reseller community along with other stakeholders like telecom operators, device manufacturers, distributors, and other vendors on a single platform," a statement said.
In 2018, about 140 million smartphones were sold in India with just over half of these being sold from general trade retailers.
Kaul is supported by co-founder Mukesh Kachroo, former Chief Technology Officer of Gain Capital Group, US.
Sofyx's platform will enable business networking, engagement, real-time feedback, and community building amongst the stakeholders and will also help drive business transactions between various partners, the statement said.
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* Samsung partners Paisabazaar.com to offer financial products on Samsung Pay
Tech major Samsung and online financial products marketplace Paisabazaar.com Tuesday announced a partnership under which credit card and personal loans will be offered on Samsung Pay.
By using the facility, Samsung Pay users can apply for credit cards and personal loans from the platform, a statement said.
The move will enable existing and potential Samsung Pay users to get the benefit of seamlessly opting for a host of financial services, it added.
An important part of the offering would be the approval process, which the companies claim is fast and seamless.
"Our partnership with Paisabazaar.com has helped us create a holistic platform that gives them the comfort of opting for various financial products besides using it as a payment platform," Samsung India Senior Director Services Manangement Sanjay Razdan said.
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