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<ul><li>In an exclusive interview with Business Insider, Pankaj Makkar, Managing Director, <keyword id="1982364" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bertelsmann-India-Investments">Bertelsmann India Investments</keyword> said that <keyword id="864887" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pepperfry">Pepperfry</keyword> is on the right path for fast growth.</li><li>Bertelsmann India Investments has been an investor in Pepperfry since 2014. </li><li>Pepperfry which had last raised funding in March 2018, is reportedly looking to raise another $100 million. </li></ul>Eight-year old online retailer of furniture and home products, Pepperfry, has been one of the market leaders in its segment in India. And its early investors are backing the startup for faster growth and scale. In an exclusive interview with Business Insider, Pankaj Makkar, Managing Director, Bertelsmann India Investments, who invested in Pepperfry in 2014, said that they are in no hurry to exit from the startup as it’s doing really well. Pepperfry has been scaling up its businesses and is also looking at achieving its $1 billion Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) <a href="https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/companies/pepperfry-targets-gross-merchandise-value-of-1-billion-by-2021-3754081.html">target</a> by 2021. With over 6 million customers, Pepperfry has 39 offline studios across 22 cities in India and is launching more. “Pepperfry has always been ahead of the curve. Its omni-channel strategy of scaling up operations across metros and tier I and II cities, has worked exceptionally well. We are confident that with the right scale and their strong unit economics, Pepperfry will continue to lead the furniture <keyword id="436047" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ecommerce">eCommerce</keyword> space in India,” said Makkar. The propelling factor in Pepperfry’s journey would be there right selection to be in the e-commerce category unlike in horizontal e-commerce (businesses that sell products from various categories). “In e-commerce, if you look at horizontal businesses, they play on very small margins but if you look at categories like furniture, they play on very high margins,” said Makkar. Founded by Ambareesh Murty and Ashish Shah, Pepperfry had last raised a funding of $38.5 million in March 2018. According to reports, the company is also looking at <a href="https://tech.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/internet/existing-investors-may-invest-100m-in-pepperfry/67519933">raising another</a> $100 million this year. While its valuation remains undisclosed, it has often been <a href="https://inc42.com/datalab/30-indian-soonicorns-that-have-the-potential-to-be-unicorns-by-2020-part-2/">listed</a> as a soonicorn (soon to be unicorn or valued at $1 billion). See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/after-amazon-pepperfry-launches-wedding-gift-registry-on-its-platform/articleshow/68171208.cms">Indian e-tailers want you to choose the presents that your friends will pay for</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/heres-why-pepperfry-is-taking-the-omni-channel-route-before-ikea-enters-the-indian-market/articleshow/59730212.cms">Here’s why Pepperfry is taking the Omni-channel route before IKEA enters the Indian market</a>

An investor in Pepperfry, India’s largest online furniture retailer, is in no rush to exit

New Delhi, May 11 () Shiprocket, a tech-enabled logistics aggregator, on Monday said it has raised USD 13 million (about Rs 100 crore) in funding led by Tribe Capital LLC and Innoven Capital. The series C funding round also saw participation from existing investor Bertelsmann India Investments. The latest capital infusion brings Shiprocket's total funding to USD 26 million, a statement said. "The investment will be used to fuel Shiprocket's aggressive product development roadmap which includes hiring top talent across data science and engineering domains. The funds will also be focused on the company's new initiatives including its international expansions," it added. As part of the agreement, Arjun Sethi from Tribe Capital LLC will join Shiprocket's board of directors. "The boom in D2C (Direct to Consumer) brands and social selling across India has been facilitated by companies like ours who are committed to providing advanced technology and fulfillment solutions to online sellers enabling them to compete with larger brands and marketplaces," Shiprocket CEO and co-founder Saahil Goel said. This additional capital will allow the company to accelerate its strategic goals and product development endeavours by hiring top talent in key areas, he added. Launched by Bigfoot Retail Solutions in 2017, Shiprocket turned profitable in 2018-19 with an annualised revenue run rate between USD 25-30 million. Shiprocket said it processes more than 2 million monthly shipments, enabling more than 35,000 sellers to sell directly to their consumers across India. Shiprocket has previously raised USD 13 million in funding from existing investors Bertelsmann India Investments, Nirvana Venture Partners, Beenext and 500 startups who continue to back Shiprocket. The latest round gives nearly 30 times returns in five years for Shiprocket's angel investors who exited in this round, the company said. Early angels in the company include angel investor Jatin Aneja and 5ideas/Superfuel run by Gaurav Kachru and Pearl Uppal. SR DRRDRR

Shiprocket raises USD 13 mn from Tribe Capital, Innoven Capital, Bertelsmann India Investments

New Delhi, E-commerce aggregation platform <keyword id="4178573" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="ShipRocket">Shiprocket</keyword> on Thursday announced it has raised $27 million (nearly 200 Crore) in <keyword id="45633" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="series">Series</keyword> C3 funding. The company said it will use the fresh funds towards aggressive product development roadmap, which includes hiring top talent across product, data, and engineering functions. The funds will also focus on the company's new strategic initiatives, including expanding globally. The fresh funding round was co-led by Tribe Capital, a leading Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm, along with March Capital, a Santa Monica-based venture growth firm. "Shiprocket is the first and the largest D2C shipping enabler in India today. With the growth in D2C as a share of overall <keyword id="436047" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ecommerce">eCommerce</keyword>, there is a growing opportunity to enable the full-stack of services in the post-purchase journey of the D2C consumer," said Saahil Goel, CEO and Co-founder, Shiprocket. Rahul Mehta of DST Global also participated in the round along with existing investor Bertelsmann India Investments, the company said in a statement. The latest round brings Shiprocket's total funding to $53 million. "We already power shipping for over 100,000 merchants and have recently launched Shiprocket Fulfilment for extending the existing platform include storage, pick, pack and dispatch," Goel informed. Launched in 2017, Shiprocket turned profitable in FY18-19 and has an annualised revenue run rate between $50-60 million. Shiprocket currently processes more than 4 Million monthly shipments, enabling more than 100,000 sellers to sell directly to their consumers across India. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/policy/society/news/indian-prime-minister-narendra-modi-wants-data-democracy-it-must-avoid-the-flaws-of-the-political-system/articleshow/81060582.cms">Datacracy: Indian Prime Minister's 'data democracy' must avoid the flaws of the country’s political system</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/retail/news/dmart-is-now-a-2-trillion-company-radhakishan-damani-has-many-more-cards-to-pull-the-first-being-e-commerce/articleshow/81054553.cms">DMart is now a ₹2 trillion company – Radhakishan Damani has many more cards to pull, the first being e-commerce</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/heres-how-hyundai-india-crossed-the-9-million-mark-beating-peers-like-mahindra-and-tata-motors/articleshow/81054282.cms">Hyundai nears 25 years of success in India — here’s how this carmaker crossed the 9 million-mark, beating peers like Mahindra and Tata Motors</a>

Shiprocket is now looking to hire product managers and engineers after raising $27 million in funds

E-commerce aggregation platform <keyword id="4178573" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="ShipRocket">Shiprocket</keyword> on Thursday said it has raised $41.3 million (about Rs 305 crore) in Series D1 funding co-led by <keyword id="11591696" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="PayPal-Ventures">PayPal Ventures</keyword>, the corporate VC arm of <keyword id="6357940" type="DEFINITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="paypal">PayPal</keyword>. The latest infusion of capital brings Shiprocket's total funding to $94.3 million. The New Delhi-based company said that it aims to leverage these funds to fuel product development for both existing and new products, to invest in research and development, continue <keyword id="29547" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Market">market</keyword> expansion and accelerate overall growth. Direct-to-consumer (D2C) <keyword id="84" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Commerce">commerce</keyword> forms roughly 15 per cent of the overall e-commerce market in India and this is projected to grow to 30-35 per cent in the next five years. "Shiprocket is democratizing best-in-class experiences for hundreds of thousands of eCommerce brands that are shipping millions of items per month through our platform today," said <keyword id="1759829" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Saahil-Goel">Saahil Goel</keyword>, CEO, and Co-Founder of Shiprocket. A part of the funds will also be directed towards the platform's new strategic initiatives, including global expansion starting with the Middle East, the company said. Existing investors Bertelsmann India Investments and <keyword id="10449266" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Info-Edge-Ventures">Info Edge Ventures</keyword>, March Capital and <keyword id="9200827" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="tribe-capital">Tribe Capital</keyword> also participated in the round. The funding round also saw participation from strategic partners, such as <keyword id="2777173" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Razorpay">Razorpay</keyword> and Innoven Capital, and entrepreneurs including Cred founder Kunal Shah and Zomato founder Deepinder Goyal. "Shiprocket has excelled by focusing on building products that solve major logistical problems for businesses as they scale, much like PayPal has supported merchants with payments," said Marc Donnadieu, Director, PayPal Ventures. Over 100,000 online sellers in India are using Shiprocket to streamline their post-checkout process, starting from logistics to warehousing to COD management. "The goal is that as Shiprocket expands its capabilities and tools for sellers, anyone with a product to sell should be able to avail of Shiprocket's suite of products and services at one click to get their business off-the-ground with an Amazon-like one-day delivery experience", said Kitty Agarwal, Partner, Info Edge Ventures. Founded in 2017, Shiprocket became profitable in FY18-19 and is on track to close this financial year at $100 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR). Shiprocket currently processes more than 5 million monthly shipments. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/cryptocurrencies-exchanges-can-run-into-trouble-with-investors/articleshow/84205889.cms">Cryptocurrencies aren't all diamonds and roses — lawsuits from people who lost big are piling up with exchanges</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/simple-energy-new-electric-scooter-promises-240km-range-on-a-70-minute-charge/articleshow/84164967.cms">This new electric scooter promises 240KM range on a 70-minute charge, could be priced under ₹1,20,000</a>

PayPal pumps in ₹305 crore in Indian logistics platform Shiprocket

<ul><li>Glance will now have access to Roposo’s regional content creators and 42 million users</li><li>Roposo, founded by three IIT Delhi alumni, offers a TV-like interface that allows users to watch videos in 10 languages and across 24 channels that are powered by a pan-India network of regional influencers. </li><li>Glance has more than 60 million daily active users (DAUs) as of November 2019, up from 50 million DAUs in September 2019. </li></ul>Glance has acquired Roposo, a Tiger Global and Bertelsmann backed short-video platform to access its extensive network of professionals, regional content creators and more than 42 million users. The acquisition also gives Glance ownership of Roposo’s video technology, platform and brand. Roposo, founded by three IIT Delhi alumni, offers a TV-like interface that allows users to watch videos in 10 languages and across 24 channels that are powered by a pan-India network of regional influencers. The acquisition of the platform will enable Glance to tap into Roposo’s regional influencers and create professional vernacular, video content in line with Glance’s editorial guidelines for the lock screen. Nearly 60% of Glance users in India belong to Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, and spend an average of 22 minutes per day consuming content in a language of their choice. Glance currently provides content in 4 languages that include Hindi, Tamil and Telugu, besides English. “Most of India wants high quality video content in vernacular since only 10% of India speaks English,” said Naveen Tewari, Founder and CEO at InMobi Group. “Glance’s focus on 3Vs - video content across a variety of topics in vernacular - has already made it India’s fastest growing content platform. This acquisition will enable Glance to bring to the fore content created by Roposo’s large vernacular influencer community.” Glance, which had announced an investment of $45 million from Mithril Capital in September 2019, has been growing rapidly since its first shipment in Q2 2018. It is integrated with the native user experience on most Android smartphones from India’s leading mobile brands. Glance has more than 60 million daily active users (DAUs) as of November 2019, up from 50 million DAUs in September 2019. The parent company – InMobi – founded in 2007, is one of the leaders in the adtech space and was India’s first unicorn, which is valued at over $1 billion

Glance to boost its regional content after acquiring Roposo, a short-video platform

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div></div></div>Good morning. Here's everything you need to know in the world of <keyword id="35666" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="advertising">advertising</keyword> today.1. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-universal-windows-app-in-windows-10-are-deeply-flawed-2015-8">There's one glaring flaw with Microsoft's Windows 10 strategy.</a> Microsoft hasn't given developers any real reason to build Universal Windows Apps.2. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/shop-jeen-is-taking-over-teen-retail-2015-8">An outrageous brand run by a 23-year-old is taking over teen retail.</a> Shop Jeen truly caters to an emoji-loving, internet-obsessed generation with a mildly offensive clothing selection.3. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/chris-gomersall-atomized-profile-2015-8">This Facebook exec became increasingly perplexed by how terrible marketers and agencies were at organizing their creative materials.</a> So he quit the company to create his own content calendar management software start-up.4. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-leads-8-million-investment-in-whowhatwear-2015-8">Amazon invested in a company that helps you buy stuff that celebrities love to wear.</a> Clique Media, which owns WhoWhatWear, has raised $8 million in funding from Amazon, Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments, and several existing investors.5. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/brand-names-outside-the-us-2015-8">These 12 huge brands are called something completely different outside the US.</a> You won't find Burger King in Australia, or KFC in Quebec.6. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/mike-melgaard-target-facebook-troll-2015-8">This guy posed as Target on Facebook.</a> He trolled customers who were angry about the retailer's new gender-neutral toy policy.7. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/ted-talks-that-teach-you-about-business-2015-8">These 10 TED talks will make you smarter about </a><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/ted-talks-that-teach-you-about-business-2015-8">business.</a> There are talks on how to motivate yourself, how to be a more effective leader, and how to launch a company.8. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/how-pepsi-ceo-indra-nooyi-motivates-herself-2015-8">Pepsi CEO Indra Nooyi has revealed how she motivates herself every morning.</a> Nooyi tells HBR that her daily inspiration to keep PepsiCo growing is rooted in a sense of the rebelliousness she developed as a child growing up in the socially conservative city of Madras (now Chennai), India.9. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/fox-boss-reportedly-told-trump-to-make-nice-or-go-to-war-2015-8">Fox News chairman Roger Ailes reportedly told Donald Trump to make nice with the network or "go to war."</a> Ailes was reportedly angered when Trump appeared Monday on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" and said that he believed Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly owed him an apology for her tough questions in last week's Republican presidential debate.10. <a href="http://adage.com/article/agency-news/wpp-big-winner-coke-s-global-creative-review/299962/">WPP is the big winner of Coke's global creative review, AdAge reports.</a> Coke has selected WPP shops Ogilvy New York, Sra Rushmore, and Santo to lead its next big global campaign. <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/animated-map-us-rainfall-in-2015-2015-8">This animated map captures the dramatic difference in rainfall across America this year</a></h3> <div> <div> <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="syeGMwdzowXwUGPtPnQutblwDL3jTgq1" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div> </div> </div> </div>

The 10 things in advertising you need to know today

If you are sceptic about run-of-the-mill online courses or can’t decode the learning materials on your own, it’s time to go for the best of both worlds. How about <keyword id="1928389" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="WizIQ">WizIQ</keyword>, a <keyword id="406113" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Virtual-classroom">virtual classroom</keyword> that can be accessed from anywhere, from any device, while teachers handhold students just like they do in a physical institution? But there’s more to it. Even premier institutions such as IIT-Delhi, Vellore Institute of Technology and <keyword id="59489" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Indian-School-of-Mines">Indian School of Mines</keyword> (Dhanbad) are tying up with this Mohali-headquartered firm for certificate courses and distance learning programmes. Overseas organisations using the solution include <keyword id="1928396" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Atlantic-University-in-Virginia-Beach">Atlantic University in Virginia Beach</keyword> and Des Moines Area Community Colleges in Iowa, among others. The SaaS-based (<keyword id="753967" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="software-as-a-service">Software-as-a-Service</keyword>) education platform is hosted on the Cloud and successfully operates a marketplace where teachers can sell their courses to its 3-million-strong student community. 
 WizIQ offers a collaborative and flexible platform for delivering and enhancing any online course – be it high school maths, hybrid courses for university students or employee training programmes. What sets it apart from other <keyword id="1928409" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="edu-tech">edu-tech</keyword> companies is its focus on teacher-and-learner-centred methods instead of just providing gigabytes and gigabytes of content. It is also an excellent interface for conducting <keyword id="1071995" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Massive-Open-Online-Courses">Massive Open Online Courses</keyword> (<keyword id="1539483" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="MOOCs">MOOCs</keyword>). Best of all, WizIQ’s Virtual Classroom software works cross-platform – on PCs, <keyword id="75489" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="IOS">iOS</keyword> and <keyword id="6355645" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="android">Android</keyword> devices. It can also be integrated with <keyword id="1928395" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="learning-management-systems">learning management systems</keyword> like Moodle or Blackboard or with an organisation’s own website. 
 True to its global stature, the platform has a multilingual interface and supports 19 languages. The company also opened an office in Bangalore yesterday in a bid to expand further. WizIQ has other offices in Hyderabad and North Carolina as well. Here is a snapshot that captures the vision and viability of the <keyword id="13178" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Mohali">Mohali</keyword> start-up gone global. 
 
Who runs WizIQ: The venture was started by <keyword id="222685" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Harman-Singh">Harman Singh</keyword> (CEO) in 2007. The parent company is <keyword id="1696366" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Authorgen-Technologies">authorGEN Technologies</keyword>, which was founded in 2002 by Harman and late Harbir Khurana. Harman holds a master’s degree in Computer Science from <keyword id="283601" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="North-Carolina-State-University">North Carolina State University</keyword>. Prior to WizIQ, he had also founded authorSTREAM, an online PowerPoint sharing platform. 
 
What inspired the venture: The concept of making quality education accessible to all at reasonable charges. Harman came up with the idea during his graduation years and the goal was to make teaching and learning easier for everyone. 
 
What’s the pitch: Do more than stand and deliver – engage your students. Content might be the king but at WizIQ, teachers are back where they belong and replicates the classroom experience online. That creates a distinctive style and ensures a great engagement model. 
 
How it works: WizIQ enables teachers and trainers to hold ‘live’ classes and share tutorials in all possible formats – PowerPoint presentation, PDF, Word document, virtual whiteboards, voice and video. Learners only need an Internet connection to ‘attend’ those classes and don’t require to download anything or pre-install cumbersome client software. An integrated chat is there as well to make each session interactive. 
 
Technology: The platform leverages Microsoft technologies. For real-time communication between students and teachers, it uses Flash Media Server (FMS) and Flex at front-end. Amazon S3 is used for data storage and wherever heavy computation power is needed, Amazon EC2 service is used. To optimise the ‘live class’ experience, servers are placed at multiple locations like the US, Singapore, Sao Paulo and Ireland. 
 
Claim to fame: Traction and awards. WizIQ claims that over 250,000 teachers and 3 million learners are using the platform across 100-plus countries. The company also says it has the largest collection of paid courses created by educators on the Internet and hosts more than 2,500 live classes daily via WizIQ Virtual Classroom. Teachers and organisations are also using WizIQ to conduct successful MOOCs. 
 
Show me the money: It is essentially a paid platform for teachers looking to conduct online classes. Fee starts at $19 per month (or $190 a year) and can go up to $69 per month (or $690 annually). WizIQ offers a freemium model and some features on this platform are free. For instance, teachers can hold 2 classes per month free of cost and there’s a 30-day free trial for those who want to try out its advanced features. Around 8,000 of the total 250,000 teachers are paid members, the company claims. 
 Unlike many other start-ups, this one has been well funded all along. Educomp, India’s largest <keyword id="255607" type="TECHNOLOGY" weightage="100" keywordseo="education-technology">education technology</keyword> company, invested an undisclosed amount in the very first year. In January 2013, WizIQ also raised a Series B round of $4 million from education-focused PE firm <keyword id="342246" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Kaizen">Kaizen</keyword> and German media major Bertelsmann. 
 
Biggest challenge: Poor Internet penetration and stiff competition from those in the same space. But the toughest one is positioning. Web-enabled distance learning is definitely looking up in India, but it is yet to catch up with mainstream courses administered offline. Until that happens, scaling up will remain a major problem.

From IITs To Universities Abroad, This Virtual Classroom Is Going Places

<ul><li>In India, the pawning of a woman’s ornaments is often viewed as a last recourse for families that have run out of financial options.</li><li>To change this mindset, fintech brand Rupeek recently launched its maiden TVC with <keyword id="7637" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="manoj-bajpayee" source="Orion">Manoj Bajpayee</keyword> and Priyamani. It aims to inspire average citizens to take pride in using their gold to access credit in a safe, personal and tension-free manner.</li><li>With the ongoing festive season, when the demand for gold is at its all-time peak, we speak to Shalabh Atray, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Digital, Rupeek about its journey so far, larger marketing strategy and goals ahead.</li></ul>In India, the pawning of a woman’s ornaments is often viewed as a last recourse for families that have run out of options. However, the organised gold loan market got a significant push after the pandemic, especially among lower and middle-class income groups. The economic downturn and unending medical expenses prompted people to opt for gold loans. According to a report by the World Gold Council, the organised gold loan sector is expected to grow to ₹4.05-lakh crore this fiscal at an annual rate of 15.7%. With the festive season, this demand for gold is expected to skyrocket. So, to ride on this uptick in demand for the yellow shiny metal and help address the stigmas associated with pawning of gold, fintech platform Rupeek has launched a new campaign. Featuring miniature Manoj Bajpayee and Priyamani, it aims to inspire people to take pride in using their gold to access credit in a safe, personal, and tension-free manner. Gold is the most celebrated asset in our country, yet people continue to undermine its potential, especially in tiding through financial exigencies. Rupeek’s campaign compares its digital process with standard bank and portrays how people don’t have to worry about waiting in lines, feeling ‘small’ for applying for gold loans. Unlike banks, Rupeek offers gold loans at the customer's doorstep and completes the loan underwriting-to-disbursal process within 30 minutes. By cutting down on expenses with an online-only strategy, Rupeek offers gold loans at an interest starting at 0.69% per month. <div type="Youtube" id="MgsBwGrtHVU" title="Sone Pe Loan, Right From Home" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/MgsBwGrtHVU/mqdefault.jpg"></div> Valued at $515 Million, as per media reports, Rupeek is backed by investors such as Sequoia Capital, Bertelsmann, Accel Partners, GGV Capital, Tanglin Venture Partners, Korea's KB Investments and Flipkart cofounder and former employee Binny Bansal. We spoke to Shalabh Atray, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Digital, Rupeek to further discuss the campaign, brand’s larger marketing strategy, addressing stigmas surrounding gold loan and goals ahead. Excerpts: Q. This is your maiden high-decibel advertisement. What is the thought behind launching the campaign? Our focus with the launch of this campaign is to address the customer pain points in seeking gold loans in the country. We want to narrate stories about the problems of an age-old category and highlight Rupeek’s new-age services that will bring in the much-needed tech disruption in this market. Rupeek’s customer research highlights that borrowers are made to feel small when applying for a gold loan. Through our marketing efforts, we want our customers to become aware of Rupeek’s doorstep gold loan product that is safe, personal and tension free. Q. Who is going to be your target audience for this campaign? We are aiming to tap customers who are at the cusp of entering this category, as well as light users of the category looking for safe and convenient assistance. Fifty-five percent of Rupeek’s customers are first-time borrowers and that’s the core target audience for the campaign too. Q. Why did you choose Manoj and Priyamani for your first TVC? At the onset, Manoj and Priyamani are top notch artists. It was a natural decision for us to bring them on board as Indian families could relate to their on-screen chemistry instantaneously. Both the artists have gained audience trust with their recent collaborations. More importantly, as a purpose-led, authentic brand we also felt that Manoj and Priya’s life stories and what they epitomise as humans, and not just as actors, is aligned to Rupeek’s brand values. Q. Can you tell me what is your marketing budget for this campaign? We are launching our first-ever brand campaign and the marketing spends are sizable and thoughtfully distributed amongst all the mediums. Q. How has Rupeek's journey been so far? Can you share a few key milestones? What are some of the factors that helped you drive your growth? The world came to a standstill owing to the COVID-19 pandemic and we are hoping that life will come back to normalcy at the soonest. In India, individuals and businesses' daily routine was derailed, while many people lost their jobs. Many amongst these unfortunate ones found a way to pivot and thought of starting something of their own during the lockdown, but credit was not available to everyone. Given India’s tryst with gold as an asset at a household level, Rupeek saw a surge in people opting for gold loans as a secured way of availing credit at the right interest rates from the comfort of their home. Q. Given the recent surge in demand for gold loans in India, have you witnessed an increase in demand too? And with the festive season upon us, the demand for gold is expected to skyrocket. How are you planning on leveraging this demand? The festive season is around, however this category is not seasonal. Gold is respected and celebrated in our culture. Rupeek is giving its customers easy and secured credit against their gold assets. With our unique technology-led doorstep services, we have managed to build a community of 5+ lac customers spread across 30+ cities. Almost 55%* of our customers are first time gold loan borrowers, which is highest amongst our peers. Through this campaign, we plan to tap into markets that are yet unexplored in this category. Q. What are some of the trends that you are expecting to see in the gold and loan category? The biggest trend we are seeing is the openness of consumers, specially first time borrowers in the Gold Loan category, being open to a technology led disruptor like Rupeek. To the credit of Indian consumers, they are extremely open-minded to trying tech products which are genuinely committed to understanding their pain points. Q. The market today is largely dominated by traditional NBFCs such as Muthoot Finance and Manappuram Finance. How are you carving your niche? What percentage of the market are you aiming for? In India, only 5% of the population has access to credit. Gold loans have been in the market for a very long time, but now it is being offered to customers through a digital medium. Rupeek as a brand is on a mission to solve every Indian’s credit needs using disruptive technology. The aim is to be financially inclusive by creating access to credit. With the services offered by Rupeek, we aim to tap into the remaining 95% of the population. Rupeek wishes to reach all the customers that are at the cusp of taking a loan. Q. In India, the pawning of a woman’s ornaments is often viewed as a last recourse for families who have run out of options. Is that a challenge? How are you trying to change this mindset? Gold is a celebrated asset in our country. In addition, in our conversations with existing and potential customers, we found that the collateral documents and long process to get a gold loan approved is an emotionally draining experience for consumers. In order to change this experience, Rupeek offers hassle-free doorstep gold loans. Our services are simple, safe and transparent that are backed with disruptive technology ensuring trust amongst our customers. We have found that with the right product and experience being offered, consumers are open to the idea of using their gold in a judicious way to serve their credit needs. Q. What will your focus areas for H2 2021 be? What is your larger vision for the brand? Our focus is to establish a foundation for Rupeek and position it as a brand that is new age and innovative in solving the credit pain points of Indians. While we are yet in the initial stages of the brand campaign, our aim is to achieve longevity in our messaging with the support of earned media activities. Over the next six months, we plan to tap into the potential customers who are still analysing their options and introduce them to Rupeek’s hassle-free doorstep online gold loans.

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