<ul><li><keyword id="6358977" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="swiggy" source="Orion">Swiggy</keyword> has announced that it is changing the terms and conditions of its One membership.</li><li>Swiggy One users will be able to use the account on only two devices at once.</li><li>The changes will come into effect from February 6, 2023.</li></ul>Food delivery platform Swiggy is the latest company to crack down on password sharing, following the footsteps of Netflix, which recently announced its<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/youve-got-less-than-10-weeks-left-to-let-your-mom-sister-or-partner-use-your-netflix-login/articleshow/97321007.cms"> password sharing</a> policy. The new password sharing policy will come into effect from February 6, 2023. Swiggy has started notifying Swiggy One subscribers, informing them that it is changing the terms and conditions of Swiggy One. This means that the current changes are applicable only to Swiggy One subscribers for now. Swiggy One is the company’s premium subscription service that offers benefits such as free delivery, additional discounts and more. The company currently offers two plans – a quarterly plan and an annual plan. As part of Swiggy One, users get free deliveries on food orders above ₹149, Instamart orders above ₹199, and up to 30% discount on food and dining. <div type="image" title="composite_16753265048004" msid="97548403" hostid="261" sizebytes="19900" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Swiggy is charging different prices for its One membership to differnt users&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> Interestingly, the prices for its plans are different for different users while offering the same benefits. Users who renew their membership are charged considerably more than new users. “We are updating our terms &amp; conditions soon. As per this update, effective Feb 6th, Swiggy One members can log into a maximum of two devices at any given time,” Swiggy said in a notification to users. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Changes aimed at reducing “misuse”" comment="subhead" text="Changes aimed at reducing “misuse”">Changes aimed at reducing “misuse”</cmsannotation> Swiggy has claimed that it is implementing the changes to prevent instances of “misuse” of the <keyword id="12757312" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="swiggy-one-membership" source="Orion">Swiggy One membership</keyword>. The company has said that the membership is meant for “personal use” and the password sharing policy is aimed at reducing instances of misuse. “The Swiggy One membership is meant for personal usage. Implementing this change will reduce instances of misuse. This ensures we are able to serve our members in the most optimal way while still maintaining fair usage within reasonable parameters,” the company added. Swiggy has also added that this change is necessary to ensure that the membership remains affordable to users and continues to be sustainable for the company. “This change ensures that we continue to make the membership affordable for all customers and sustainable for Swiggy,” the company added. At present, there is no limit on how many devices can be logged into using a single account and users often purchase membership on one account and share it with their friends and family members. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/samsung-galaxy-s23-s23-plus-and-s23-ultra-price-availability-india/articleshow/97544314.cms">Samsung Galaxy S23, S23 Plus, and S23 Ultra priced starting at ₹74,999 in India</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/budget/news/from-cheaper-smartphones-to-100-5g-labs-here-are-the-top-tech-announcements-in-budget-2023-24/articleshow/97527763.cms">From cheaper smartphones to 100 5G labs, here are the top tech announcements in Budget 2023-24</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/after-iphones-apple-reportedly-starts-manufacturing-components-for-airpods-in-india/articleshow/97515033.cms">After iPhones, Apple reportedly starts manufacturing components for AirPods in India</a>

Swiggy cracks down on password sharing, allows users to use same account on only two devices

<ul><li><keyword id="6358977" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="swiggy" source="Orion">Swiggy</keyword> on Monday announced its new <keyword id="12584073" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="swiggy-one-subscription" source="Orion">Swiggy One subscription</keyword> service.</li><li>The subscription offers unlimited free deliveries and discounts to users.</li><li>The plan is priced at ₹299 for 3 months and ₹899 for 12 months.</li></ul>Food delivery app Swiggy announced on Monday its new subscription plan, dubbed as <keyword id="12582902" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="swiggy-one" source="Orion">Swiggy One</keyword>. The service offers more benefits when compared to the company’s existing Swiggy Super subscription service and will offer free unlimited deliveries and discounts across various Swiggy services. Here’s everything you need to know about the Swiggy One subscription service. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Swiggy One – eligible cities" comment="subhead" text="Swiggy One – eligible cities">Swiggy One – eligible cities</cmsannotation> Swiggy One is currently available only in four cities – Lucknow, Pune, Trivandrum and Vijayawada. It will be expanded to over 500 cities in the next two weeks. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Swiggy One – subscription price" comment="subhead" text="Swiggy One – subscription price">Swiggy One – subscription price</cmsannotation> Swiggy One will be available with an introductory price of ₹299 for 3 months and at ₹899 for 12 months, which translates to ₹75 per month. Currently Swiggy offers two plans – Bite and Binge. While the Bite plan is priced at ₹129 per month, the Binge plan is priced at ₹199 per month. The two plans will be replaced by Swiggy One and all members will be upgraded to the new plan for the remainder of their membership. Apart from this, existing Swiggy Super members will also get a one-month extension on their membership. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Swiggy One membership benefit" comment="subhead" text="Swiggy One membership benefit">Swiggy One membership benefit</cmsannotation> The Swiggy One membership offers unlimited free deliveries from all restaurants along with free Instamart grocery deliveries, something that was missing from Swiggy’s Bite and Binge subscription plans. Instamart orders only above ₹99 will be eligible for free delivery. In addition to this, users can also avail an additional discount of up to 30% on food orders. Users will also be able to avail offers and discounts on Swiggy Genie orders, which allows you to send parcels and get other products from local stores. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/rebel-foods-which-runs-behrouz-biryani-ovenstory-pizza-and-faasos-is-now-worth-over-a-billion-dollars/articleshow/86839518.cms">Rebel Foods — which runs Behrouz Biryani, Ovenstory Pizza, and Faasos — is now worth over a billion dollars</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/paytm-has-lost-8-billion-in-valuation-in-two-days-of-listing/articleshow/87840891.cms">Paytm is inching closer to Macquarie's target of ₹1200</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/advertising/brands/news/theres-a-new-jingle-in-town-as-swiggy-uses-the-power-of-music-to-connect-with-its-audience-and-establish-itself-as-a-last-minute-genie-coming-to-your-rescue/articleshow/87327251.cms">There’s a new jingle in town as Swiggy uses the power of music to connect with its audience and establish itself as a last-minute Genie coming to your rescue</a>

Swiggy One – membership price, benefits and everything you need to know

Online food delivery platform <keyword id="830092" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="zomato" source="Orion">Zomato</keyword> has stopped signing up new users or renewing old subscriptions for its loyalty dining membership programme called 'Pro', as the Deepinder Goyal-run company is working with customers and restaurant partners to craft a new programme. The move comes as fine-dine restaurants are now open across the country after facing a turbulent time in the pandemic, and people now prefer going out with families for dinners. The online food aggregator launched <keyword id="9490437" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="zomato-pro" source="Orion">Zomato Pro</keyword> in 2020 and Zomato Pro Plus in 2021, in a bid to let users enjoy extra perks like priority delivery, money-back guarantee and more. The food tech unicorn had renamed its <keyword id="18712" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="gold" source="Orion">Gold</keyword> subscription programme as Zomato Pro. The company has already shut its premium aPro Plus' programme. In a statement to IANS, a Zomato spokesperson said that while Zomato Pro and Pro Plus have been loved tremendously by its customers and merchants, "we want it to be even more beneficial, especially for the most engaged customers and merchant partners". "We are taking feedback and working closely with our customers and restaurant partners to craft a new programme. Meanwhile, we are not onboarding new members and merchant partners to Zomato Pro and Zomato Pro Plus," the company spokesperson added. While active members can continue to get their benefits as promised, they will not be able to extend/renew their memberships once their membership tenure expires. Zomato said it promises "to come up with a bigger, better experience very soon". Zomato's competitor <keyword id="6358977" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="swiggy" source="Orion">Swiggy</keyword> also has its own loyalty programme called Swiggy One that allows its members unlimited free deliveries from select restaurants and unlimited free delivery from <keyword id="14779240" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="quick-commerce-service" source="Orion">quick commerce service</keyword> <keyword id="9728281" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="instamart" source="Orion">Instamart</keyword> on orders more than Rs 99. Zomato reported Rs 185.7 crore in consolidated loss for the quarter ending June 30, compared to a loss of Rs 359.7 crore in the previous quarter. The consolidated revenue saw 67 per cent increase at Rs 1,413.9 crore from Rs 844.4 crore (same quarter last year), and 16.68 per cent up from Rs 1,211.8 crore in the last reported quarter. "Our focus on profitability has sharpened over the past few months with the change in market context, without compromising our focus on growth," said <keyword id="3378387" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="zomato-founder" source="Orion">Zomato Founder</keyword> and CEO <keyword id="476451" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="deepinder-goyal" source="Orion">Deepinder Goyal</keyword>. He said that the company is focused on spending wisely and continually reinforcing a lean cost culture -- "particularly in a business like ours which is currently loss making". SEE ALSO : <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/lazarus-hackers-targeting-apple-mac-users-with-fake-job-posts/articleshow/93703334.cms">Lazarus hackers targeting Apple Mac users with fake job posts</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/indians-spend-half-an-hour-every-day-on-memes-and-thats-gone-up-80-in-the-last-year/articleshow/93702734.cms">Indians spend half an hour every day on memes and that's gone up 80% in the last year</a>

Zomato stops new users, renewals for its loyalty dining programme Pro

<ul><li><keyword id="10896637" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Paras-defence-and-space-technologies" source="Orion">Paras Defence and Space Technologies</keyword> gets subscribed 23.90 times as on the second day of bidding.</li><li>The portion reserved for retail investors has been subscribed 44.65 times.</li><li>Analysts believe the IPO is a good bet for the long term considering it gets 50% of its revenue from government entities.</li></ul>Paras Defence and Space Technologies IPO has been subscribed 23.90 times till 11:59 a.m., on September 22. Overall, investors have bid for 17.06 crore shares as against 68.31 lakh shares offered by the company. Mumbai-based Paras Defence and Space Technologies has grabbed investor’s attention on huge demand for the IPO. On the first day, the IPO was fully subscribed in just one hour of bidding. The initial public offering (IPO) got a good response from investors in terms of subscription compared to other recent IPOs. The majority of the demand was from retail investors as the portion reserved for retail investors was subscribed 44.65 times. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;" class="redcator-table-advance"><colgroup></colgroup><col /><col /><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Category </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Subscription Status </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Qualified Institutional Buyers </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">0.04 times </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Non-institutional </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">6.80 times </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Retail individual </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">44.65 times </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Total </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">23.90 times </td></tr></tbody><tbody></tbody></table>The IPO consists of ₹140.6 crore fresh issue and offer for sale worth ₹30.17 crore by the promoters with a price band of ₹165-175 a share. The company is primarily engaged in the designing, developing, manufacturing, and testing of a variety of defence and space engineering products and solutions. Shares of the Mumbai-based defence company were <a href="https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/markets/paras-defence-and-space-technologies-ipo-shares-trade-at-over-125-premium-in-grey-market-7484071.html">reportedly</a> trading at a premium of ₹220 per share, up by over 125% from the price band of ₹165-170. Analysts have recommended subscribing to the IPO for the long term on strong growth prospects. “Company has [a] wide range of products and solutions for both defence and space applications. Company being one of the few players in high precision optics manufacturing for space and defence application in India has strong R&amp;D [research and development] capabilities with focus on innovation and is well positioned to benefit from the government’s “Atmanirbhar Bharat” and “Make in India” initiatives. Also, the company's strong order book gives good revenue visibility going forward,” said analysts at HEM Securities while recommending to subscribe to the IPO for long term. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/zomato-swiggy-ola-uber-app-gig-workers-move-supreme-court/articleshow/86420264.cms">Gig workers move Supreme Court seeking social security benefits from Zomato, Swiggy, Ola and Uber</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/zee-sony-merger-heres-what-sony-is-really-getting-from-zee-entertainment/articleshow/86420990.cms">Zee-Sony merger: Here’s what Sony is really getting from Zee Entertainment</a>

Paras Defence and Space Technologies IPO gets blockbuster demand from investors

<ul><li><keyword id="830092" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Zomato">Zomato</keyword> will open its IPO between July 14-16, at a price band of ₹72-76.</li><li>The company will have a cash reserve of ₹15,000 crore post issue.</li><li>However, a few analysts believe that it’s not the right call for retail investors.</li></ul>Investor or not, people across the spectrum have been keeping an eye out for Zomato’s initial public offering (IPO) for quite a while and the time has finally come. Zomato will open its IPO on Wednesday, July 14, at a price band of ₹72-76 and it is definitely something to keep a track of. This is the biggest public issue in the Indian startup ecosystem to date, well at least till the time payments firm Paytm hits the public market with its $3 billion issue. <img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/JaOc2juiBnbY1hVlokUWj0dPBIDLh9JYdlvmGBuoFt4lRXj4CINGLy-kXFpg4XW_NLcbzEEucHe7gCXVFcTaHP3vwXOEaE_1lTKhZ1qj0lS2vmRr7YxJYIXHZ0o4s5tWA4EAkKP6" /> The Gurugram-based startup, which was founded in 2008 by Deepinder Goyal and Pankaj Chhadah (exited in 2018), plans to use this capital raise for organic growth, inorganic growth and general corporate purposes. The inorganic growth will include mergers and acquisitions (M&amp;A) as well as investment in tech and customer acquisition. Zomato will have a cash level of ₹15,000 crore or close to $2 billion post-issue, the company’s chief financial officer Akshant Goyal and co-founder Gaurav Gupta said in a press conference held on July 8, 2021. Stock broking firm Ventura Securities believes that this cash pile should easily help the company sustain burn-rates for a good 7-9 years. The company’s valuation may seem optically demanding at the upper price band of ₹76, Venture Securities says. However, it has recommended subscribing to the public issue due to several reasons — evolving nature of the business, duopoly market (market with only two players), immense potential to penetrate into market, humongous untapped online opportunity in other vertices such groceries, food delivery and more, and scarcity of premium to use services. However, there have been many mixed reviews from the stockbroking firms. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;"><colgroup></colgroup><col /><col /><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Analysts </td><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Recommendations </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Motilal Oswal </td><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Investor with high risk appetite can subscribe </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">ICICI Direct </td><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Subscribe </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Choice Broking </td><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Subscribe with caution </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Ventura Securities </td><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Subscribe </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Angel Broking </td><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Subscribe </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Alchemy Capital Management </td><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Subscribe, but allocate very small amount </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Kotak Securities </td><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Not Rated </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Axis Securities </td><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Not Rated </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">JST Investments </td><td style="border-left:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #cccccc 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Not Rated </td></tr></tbody></table> Motilal Oswal says that Zomato is placed at a sweet spot as the online food delivery market is at the cusp of evolution, but predicting the growth trajectory at this juncture is a little tricky for the next few years. Valuing such early-stage businesses on a plain vanilla financial matrix might not give the right picture and may look distorted, the brokerage adds. Deven Choksey, promoter of KRChoksey Group and MD of KRChoksey Shares and Securities, tells Business Insider that this business has a particular level of being scaled up to a larger level. “They started with the food aggregator business, then they started getting into the restaurants, then into the loyalty programme [Zomato Pro], and now they are getting into the grocery business. One after another areas [sic], which they can manage, they are getting into it. This is the beauty of this particular business. Its success is largely because they keep on reinventing themselves,” he adds. Meanwhile, Hiren Ved of Alchemy Capital Management, says, “These businesses, being in their early growth stage, keep pivoting their business models often. So valuing these businesses during and immediately after the IPO is a big challenge. Ved is the cofounder, director and CEO of Alchemy Capital Management. Apprehension and risks in <keyword id="9029084" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="zomato-IPO">Zomato IPO</keyword>, according to analysts <div type="image" title="Zomato IPO opens tomorrow — and even analysts are confused" msid="84369290" hostid="261"></div> <ol><li>Zomato has a history of net losses and anticipates increased expenses in the future.</li><li>It may not be able to sustain historical growth rates going forward.</li><li>The COVID-19 pandemic, or a similar public health threat, has had an impact and could further impact the business, cash flows, and financial condition of the company.</li><li>Failing to retain existing restaurant partners, customers or delivery partners or failing to add new restaurant partners, delivery partners or customers, may have an adverse impact on the business.</li><li>It is difficult for an average investor to understand the company’s valuation in the traditional sense.</li></ol>“There would be an argument about the valuation and about the losses, but this is a new age business. It is obvious that you have to live with these kinds of arguments and you have to allow them to prosper,” Choksey notes. SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/softbank-swiggy-deals-gets-cci-approval-two-days-before-zomato-ipo/articleshow/84347306.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">SoftBank-Swiggy deal gets CCI approval, two days before Zomato IPO</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/payments-firm-mobikwik-files-for-1900-crore-ipo-reportedly-to-seek-1-billion-valuation/articleshow/84347520.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">Payments firm MobiKwik files for ₹1,900 crore IPO, reportedly to seek $1 billion valuation</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/softbank-swiggy-deals-gets-cci-approval-two-days-before-zomato-ipo/articleshow/84347306.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/telecom/news/reliance-jio-adds-nine-times-more-subscribers-than-airtel-in-april-2021/articleshow/84367596.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">Reliance Jio picks up serious pace, adds nine times more subscribers than Airtel in April – Vodafone Idea continues its downward spiral</a>

Zomato IPO opens tomorrow — and even analysts are confused

<ul><li>Google is all set to launch the <keyword id="21304170" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pixel-9" source="keywords">Pixel 9</keyword> series globally today, ahead of the India launch on August 14.</li><li>The <keyword id="21001024" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Google-Pixel-9-series" source="keywords">Google Pixel 9 series</keyword> launch event will be live-streamed on the company’s YouTube channel.</li><li>Here’s everything we know so far about the upcoming <keyword id="22767919" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pixel-9-series-smartphones" source="keywords">Pixel 9 series smartphones</keyword>.</li></ul> Google is scheduled to launch the Pixel 9 series on August 13 globally, followed by an<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/google-pixel-9-pro-fold-to-launch-in-india-on-august-14-alongside-the-pixel-9-series/articleshow/111855704.cms"> India launch</a> on August 14. The Pixel 9 series is expected to include four devices – Pixel 9, <keyword id="21304169" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pixel-9-Pro" source="keywords">Pixel 9 Pro</keyword>, <keyword id="22185014" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pixel-9-Pro-XL" source="keywords">Pixel 9 Pro XL</keyword> and the <keyword id="21729544" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pixel-9-Pro-Fold" source="keywords">Pixel 9 Pro Fold</keyword>. Unlike last year, the company’s new foldable offering has been included in the Pixel 9 lineup. In addition to this, the company is also set to launch a new Pixel smartphone with a larger display, taking the number of devices in the Pixel 9 series to four. <h2>Pixel 9 series event date and time</h2>The Pixel 9 series is scheduled to launch globally today at 10:30 PM, followed by an India launch on August 14. <h2>How to watch <keyword id="22767920" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pixel-9-series-launch" source="keywords">Pixel 9 series launch</keyword></h2>The Pixel 9 series launch event will be live-streamed on the company’s website and its<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_y2tP9of8A"> YouTube channel</a>. <h2><keyword id="22767918" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pixel-9-series-design" source="keywords">Pixel 9 series design</keyword> and specifications</h2>To begin, the Pixel 9 series will be available in new colour options – Dark Grey, Light Grey, Off-White and Pink. The sides of the device will be polished, while the back will be soft matte, just like the<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/google-pixel-8-pro-review/articleshow/107726935.cms"> Pixel 8 Pro</a>. A significant change is the large camera island being used for the new Pixel 9 series. While the vanilla Pixel 9 will feature a dual camera setup, the Pro models are expected to offer a triple camera setup. Starting with the Pixel 9, it is expected to feature a 6.3-inch Full HD+ 120Hz AMOLED screen. It is expected to feature a dual camera setup consisting of a 50MP primary camera and a 48MP ultra-wide-angle camera. It will be equipped with 12GB RAM. The Pixel 9 Pro will also feature a 6.3-inch Full HD+ 120Hz AMOLED screen. The Pixel 9 Pro XL on the other hand will offer a 6.8-inch Full HD+ 120Hz AMOLED screen. Both the devices will feature a triple camera setup at the back consisting of a 50MP primary camera, a 48MP ultra-wide-angle camera and a 48MP telephoto lens. The devices will offer 16GB RAM. The Pixel 9 Pro Fold will offer a 6.3-inch cover display and an 8-inch inner display. The device will offer a triple camera setup consisting of a 48MP primary camera, a 10.5MP ultra-wide-angle camera and a 10.5MP telephoto lens. The new Google Tensor G4 chipset will power all four smartphones. <h2>Pixel 9 series features</h2>As per the marketing material, users who buy the new Pixel 9 series will get a free Gemini One AI Premium Plan subscription for one year. Google is also introducing a Pixel Screenshot feature, that will allow users to save information from screenshots such as events, places, names and more. The Pixel 9 series will get seven years of Pixel Drops and security updates. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/webstories/saraswati-saree-depot-ipo-price-band-to-risk-factors-all-you-need-to-know/slidelist/112457330.cms">Saraswati Saree Depot IPO – Price band to risk factors, all you need to know</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/ola-wants-to-re-enter-the-quick-commerce-business-to-take-on-blinkit-and-swiggy-instamart/articleshow/112364583.cms">Ola wants to re-enter the quick commerce business to take on Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/global-smartphone-market-records-8-growth-in-q2-2024-samsung-takes-the-top-spot/articleshow/112223188.cms">Global smartphone market records 8% growth in Q2 2024, Samsung takes the top spot</a>

Google Pixel 9 series to launch today – How to watch the event, what to expect and more

<ul><li><keyword id="19903807" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Elon-Musk" source="keywords">Elon Musk</keyword> on Tuesday claimed that X, formerly <keyword id="19959118" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Twitter" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Twitter" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Twitter">Twitter</keyword>, reached a 'record high in usage'</li><li>Musk said that X experienced a total of "417 billion user-seconds globally" in one day. </li><li>In March, XData claimed that 250 million people use X every day for 30 minutes on an average.</li></ul>Tech billionaire and <keyword id="19895433" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tesla" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Tesla" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Tesla">Tesla</keyword> CEO Elon Musk claimed on Tuesday that his platform X, formerly Twitter, reached a 'record high in usage'. Musk said that X experienced a total of "417 billion user-seconds globally" in one day. In a post on X, Musk said, "<keyword id="22429276" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="X-usage" source="keywords">X usage</keyword> hit another all-time high yesterday with 417 billion user-seconds globally! In the US, user-seconds reached 93B, 23% higher than the previous record of 76B. In a single day." <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> usage hit another all-time high yesterday with 417 billion user-seconds globally!In the US, user-seconds reached 93B, 23% higher than the previous record of 76B.In a single day. - Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 15, 2024 </blockquote> In March, XData claimed that 250 million people use X every day for 30 minutes on an average. "You're absolutely right @XNews. 250 million people use X every day. 550 million people visit the global town square every month. On average, users spend 30 minutes a day on X," the post said. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> You're absolutely right @XNews. 250 million people use X every day. 550 million people visit the global town square every month.On average, users spend 30 minutes a day on X. https://t.co/RoEX4RzIxL pic.twitter.com/L9mkoWll44 - Data (@XData) March 18, 2024 </blockquote> XNews said that X is 'indispensible'. In a post, it said, "X is indispensable - and the numbers prove it! What's the latest @XData?" <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> X is indispensable - and the numbers prove it!What's the latest @XData? pic.twitter.com/HMZlHC8RwI - News (@XNews) March 18, 2024 </blockquote> Musk in October 2022, took ownership of the influential <keyword id="19897919" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="social-media" source="keywords">social media</keyword> platform - Twitter in USD 44 billion deal. In the ensuing days, Musk fired top executives, laid off half of the company's staff, formed a content moderation council to review account reinstatements and revamped the platform's subscription service. There have been many changes in the company since Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took over, some of which have been rather contentious, such as when he opted to restore suspended accounts. With controversial decisions, Twitter started losing huge amounts of advertisement revenue, after which Musk introduced paid verifications in the form of <keyword id="20038997" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="twitter-blue" source="keywords">Twitter Blue</keyword>. Musk, in July 2023, rebranded the platform as X over the summer, replacing the well-known blue bird associated with Twitter. To boost platform engagement, Musk announced on March 28, 2024 that X accounts with over 2,500 verified subscriber followers would be granted free access to Premium features, while those with over 5,000 followers would enjoy Premium+ features at no cost. SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/zomato-and-swiggy-increase-platform-fee-by-20-food-deliveries-to-get-costlier/articleshow/111758782.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/zomato-and-swiggy-increase-platform-fee-by-20-food-deliveries-to-get-costlier/articleshow/111758782.cms" target="_blank">Zomato and Swiggy increase platform fee by 20% – food deliveries to get costlier</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/oneplus-summer-launch-event-oneplus-nord-4-pad-2-and-more-to-launch-today/articleshow/111772672.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/oneplus-summer-launch-event-oneplus-nord-4-pad-2-and-more-to-launch-today/articleshow/111772672.cms" target="_blank">OnePlus Summer Launch Event – OnePlus Nord 4, Pad 2 and more to launch today</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/ipos-this-week-four-ipos-to-hit-the-street-this-week/articleshow/111745283.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/ipos-this-week-four-ipos-to-hit-the-street-this-week/articleshow/111745283.cms" target="_blank">IPOs this week – four IPOs to hit the street this week</a>

Elon Musk claims 'record high' X usage

<ul><li><keyword id="830092" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="zomato" source="Orion">Zomato</keyword> has relaunched its Gold loyalty program, offering discounts and special access to subscribers.</li><li>Gold subscribers will get free deliveries and up to 30% discount on food deliveries.</li><li>The company has also announced up to 40% discount for dining.</li></ul>Popular food delivery app Zomato has relaunched its Gold loyalty program, replacing the company’s “Pro Plus” membership that was discontinued in 2021. The <keyword id="7913404" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="zomato-gold-membership" source="Orion">Zomato Gold membership</keyword> is expected to be available to members soon. Users who subscribed to the company’s Pro Plus membership will get three months of complimentary Gold membership. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Zomato Gold price" comment="subhead" text="Zomato Gold price"><keyword id="16229038" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="zomato-gold-price" source="Orion">Zomato Gold price</keyword></cmsannotation> <keyword id="4299597" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="zomato-gold" source="Orion">Zomato Gold</keyword> has been launched with an introductory price of ₹149 for three months. The company has not revealed the price for an annual subscription yet. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Zomato Gold benefits" comment="subhead" text="Zomato Gold benefits"><keyword id="16229042" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="zomato-gold-benefits" source="Orion">Zomato Gold benefits</keyword></cmsannotation> Zomato has announced several benefits for food deliveries and dining. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Zomato Gold benefits for food deliveries" comment="subhead2" text="Zomato Gold benefits for food deliveries">Zomato Gold benefits for food deliveries</cmsannotation> The biggest benefit that Zomato will offer with Gold is free food deliveries. This will be limited to restaurants within 10 km of you and applicable on orders above ₹199. This is handy for someone who regularly places orders on Zomato. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/swiggy-one-membership-price-benefits-and-everything-you-need-to-know/articleshow/87848507.cms">Swiggy One</a> offers a similar benefit, offering free deliveries within 10 km of the user on orders above ₹149. In addition to free deliveries, users will also get discounts of up to 30% at over 20,000 restaurants across the country. Zomato will also offer a “no delay guarantee” to Gold subscribers and delayed deliveries will result in the user getting a ₹100 coupon instantly. The final benefit offered under Gold for food deliveries is VIP access during rush hour. Under this, Gold subscribers will still have access to restaurants during high demand, meaning they will get priority over normal users. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Zomato Gold benefit for dining" comment="subhead2" text="Zomato Gold benefit for dining">Zomato Gold benefit for dining</cmsannotation> Zomato Gold also brings offers for dining. This time, the company has partnered with over 10,000 restaurants across the country, allowing Gold users to get discounts of up to 40% while dining out. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/the-oneplus-11-may-undercut-the-iqoo-11-to-be-the-cheapest-snapdragon-8-gen-2-smartphone-in-india/articleshow/97269913.cms">The OnePlus 11 may undercut the iQOO 11 to be the cheapest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 smartphone in India</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/logitech-mx-mechanical-keyboard-review-a-premium-mechanical-keyboard-for-professionals/articleshow/97255605.cms">Logitech MX Mechanical Keyboard review – a premium mechanical keyboard for professionals</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/samsung-galaxy-s23-series-to-launch-soon-launch-date-expected-price-and-features/articleshow/97243146.cms">Samsung Galaxy S23 series to launch soon – launch date, expected price and features</a>

Zomato Gold re-launched with free deliveries, VIP access, up to 40% discount on dining, and more

<ul><li><keyword id="830092" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="zomato" source="Orion">Zomato</keyword>’s promise to turn net profit positive in a year has cheered investors. </li><li>Margins in its core food delivery business has hit a multi-quarter high. </li><li>The worry? Monthly transacting users and gross order value has declined versus the previous reported quarter. </li><li>Nomura believes Zomato will find it difficult to achieve double-digit contributory margin with high growth in the long term </li></ul>Two years after it listed on the bourses, Zomato is on a recovery path. The stock which hit a high of over ₹150 per share fell sharply subsequently to below ₹50 a piece. However, the last quarter (Q1FY24) has seen a recovery from that level and it has now surpassed its listing price of ₹76. The stock has been rising steadily in the last three weeks, after its Q4 earnings report where it turned EBITDA positive in its core business, without including Blinkit, its quick commerce business. EBITDA is net income (earnings) with interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation. Moreover, the management also promised to turn positive not just at the consolidated adjusted EBITDA level but also at the profit after tax level in a year. Financial services company, JM Financial says this commitment is the ‘cherry on the cake’. “Tough macro posed growth headwinds but management showed urgency on profitability and that was despite the Gold programme launch,” said Jefferies. Zomato Gold is a subscription plan that offers free deliveries within a 10-kilometre radius for orders above ₹199. During the quarter, as many as 30% of the gross order value, from 1.8 million customers, came from Gold. The Gold plan could hurt its contributory margins (CM) because of its inability to charge every order. Yet, as of Q4, its CM in core food delivery business are comfortable after hitting a multi-quarter high. Contributory margins represent the incremental money generated for each unit sold after deducting the variable portion of the costs. “The core business milestone was achieved mainly on the back of solid expansion in the food delivery contribution margin to 5.8% in Q4 vs 5.1% in Q3. This was because profitability levers such as improvement in restaurant commissions and ad income, and lower discounts/variable cost offset the adverse impact of Gold launch,” said JM Financial. Ordering effects After the post-pandemic boom effects faded away, a lot of consumption patterns have changed, also evident in consumer spending on fast food — impacting growth in quick service restaurants. These headwinds have been impacting Zomato as well. The growth in Zomato’s food delivery business seems to have flatlined. Food gross order value declined 2% quarter-on-quarter, even as it grew 12% year-on-year. Moreover, its monthly transacting users (MTU) declined by 5% QoQ to 16.6 million, while growing at 6% YoY. Apart from the one-time impact of its decision to exit from 225 cities, the company attributes MTU decline to optimised marketing spend and withdrawal of the human support interface for abusive customer cohorts. “Also because of Zomato Gold, the MTUs have come down and not gone up because we do see an impact of clubbing some orders in the same households, which might have just a single membership,” Akshant Goyal, chief financial officer of Zomato said in an earnings concall. The management, however, remains confident about food delivery ordering going up in the first quarter of FY24. Analysts, on the other hand, are not too confident about their ability to sustain growth beyond the first quarter as summer holiday and IPL impact during April/May are one-off events. Its other businesses, however, continue to display good growth. Blinkit’s gross order value grew 17% QoQ, while order volume grew 24%. Revenues of Hyperpure, its business to supply ingredients to restaurants, grew 13.5% QoQ. Offsetting margins with growth While it’s on a path to profitability, Zomato is also caught between a rock and a hard place — of growth versus margins. To boost growth, it will have to go in for discounts – the lack of aggressive discounting by all players is already visible in the moderation in food ordered during the IPL season, generally a big occasion for online food platforms. This year, the IPL spike in food ordering was at a modest 7% for the industry as compared to the 2020 IPL when it was over 50%, as per Redseer. This time, there were no high <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/ipl-2023-sees-tier-2-cities-order-more-on-swiggy-zomato/articleshow/100673879.cms">decibel ads along with deep discounts.</a> Like other players in the business, the company will also find it tough to keep up with the high margin trajectory, while also chasing growth. “Overall, we lower our growth assumptions for its food delivery’s gross order value growth, from around 20% to around 17%, but raise our FY24F contributory margin estimate from 5.8% to 6.5%. We continue to believe Zomato will find it difficult to achieve double-digit contributory margin, with high growth in the long term,” said Nomura. Restaurant commissions grow but may hit an ONDC wall In the last two years, the company was also able to improve take rates or the commissions it charges restaurants consistently. Its take rates are now close to 18%. “Broadly, with our take rates, the mission is to be competitive, and we are lower than what the competition is charging. So, as we continue to add more value to restaurant businesses, we expect some improvement in commission revenue going forward,” said Goyal. But competition is heating up in the sector. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade’s Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) has breached the territory that was hitherto dominated by Zomato along with Swiggy. On the face of it, it might seem like restaurants might be offered better terms on ONDC. While Zomato will be able to compete with ONDC on efficiency and also even overall costs – as third party deliveries might be costlier– HSBC Global Research believes that it might flatten growth. “Estimates for food delivery revenue in the long term remain largely unchanged. Our short-term estimates change slightly as we build in a marginally slower increase in take rate,” the research firm said. In spite of short-term and long-term challenges ahead, Zomato seems to have settled into its listed company status to deliver value to investors by chasing topline growth instead of customers, with discounts.

With Zomato rallying over 25% in the past month, street looks at the road ahead

<ul><li><keyword id="15908229" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="hoovu-fresh" source="Orion">Hoovu Fresh</keyword> featured on the premiere episode of <keyword id="11924074" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Shark-Tank-India" source="Orion">Shark Tank India</keyword> S2 and received an offer from Sharks Peyush Bansal (co-founder Lenskart) and Aman Gupta (co-founder boAt). </li><li>The Bengaluru-based startup received pre-Series A funding of ₹6.45 crore in 2022, led by early-stage venture capital firm Sauce.VC. </li><li>Only three years old, Hoovu Fresh was started in 2019 by sisters Yeshoda and <keyword id="15963614" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="rhea-karuturi" source="Orion">Rhea Karuturi</keyword>. </li></ul>Shark Tank India - Season 2 started this week, and already the pitches (and the judges) are creating a storm on social media. And if there’s one business idea that stood out from the rest, it’s Hoovu Fresh - the floral startup supplying traditional puja flowers. The Hoovu Fresh sister duo of Yeshoda and Rhea Karuturi courted interest from all the Sharks but ultimately walked away with an investment worth ₹1 crore <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Cm7FFm9yliW/?hl=en">from Sharks </a>Peyush Bansal (co-founder Lenskart) and Aman Gupta (co-founder boAt). The Bengaluru-based startup Hoovu Fresh by Rose Bazaar started as a subscription-based flower delivery model in 2019. As per the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbtD2ImUzN4&amp;ab_channel=SETIndia">pitch on the show</a>, in just three years, Hoovu Fresh has expanded to eight cities and completed over two million orders. It’s also associated with over 300 temples and 500 farmers, and is available via multiple delivery platforms, including BigBasket, Swiggy, and Zepto, among others. But it all <a href="https://hoovufresh.com/pages/about-us">started with a desire </a>by the cofounders, Rhea and Yeshoda, “to achieve something really simple: make flowers a way of life for millions of households across India.” <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Revolutionising the traditional flower industry" comment="subhead2" text="Revolutionising the traditional flower industry">Revolutionising the traditional flower industry</cmsannotation> Although the Karuturi sisters started Hoovu – Kannada word for flower – in 2019, their love for the floral industry is not recent. By their own admission, the two grew up in floriculture farms, “hearing about harvest cycles, auction prices and freight rates.” In 1994– the same year when <keyword id="15949601" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="yeshoda-karuturi" source="Orion">Yeshoda Karuturi</keyword> was born–their father started Karuturi Global with a rose farm. Today, Karuturi is one of the <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/nri/working-abroad/ramakrishna-karuturi-man-behind-karuturi-global-worlds-largest-producer-of-cut-roses/articleshow/10973220.cms?from=mdr">world’s largest producers of cut roses</a>, spread across Ethiopia, Kenya and India. And with the growth of the family business, the sisters have directly observed the changing landscape of the flower industry in India. As they state <a href="https://hoovufresh.com/pages/about-us">on their website</a>, “we saw how the industry changed dramatically - from unorganised, fragmented markets to the setting up of the International Flower Auction Bangalore, the first exports of cut roses from Bangalore and the awe-inspiring Kenyan farm, which was the world’s largest rose farm.” However, while the supply chain in the cut-flower industry changed over the years to add value for both the producers and the end consumers, the supply chain in the ‘traditional flower’ industry remained the same - incredibly fragmented and unorganised, with high wastage. As per Hoovu Fresh, traditional or ‘puja’ flowers are the flowers an average Indian consumer uses almost daily - mostly for prayers or simple, everyday activities. “Most Indians interact with traditional flowers - jasmine, marigold, chrysanthemum, bud roses, etc - every single day. They use it in their morning prayer, to decorate their hair, to hang up in their auto, car, offices. Traditional flower usage is a ubiquitous need, just like the daily newspaper or milk,” states Hoovu Fresh. Combining their knowledge of agriculture with the untapped potential of the industry, the duo came up with a way to reduce the turnaround time from harvest to reaching the customers. Hoovu Fresh claims to have reduced the turnaround time to 12-24 hours from 36-48 hours. Furthermore, Hoovu Fresh also states that it uses innovative packaging to extend the shelf life of the flowers to 15 days from the usual 2 days. Apart from flowers, Hoovu Fresh’s product offerings <a href="https://hoovufresh.com/collections/agarbathi-and-dhoop">include </a>agarbathis, dhoop sticks and incense cones in five different flavours - Rose, Jasmine, Lavender, Sandalwood and Tulsi. They also <a href="https://citytoday.media/2022/12/07/hoovu-fresh-raises-790k-in-a-pre-series-a-round-led-by-sauce-vc/">partnered </a>with the ISKCON temple in Bangalore for flower decorations. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Pre-series A funding locked" comment="subhead2" text="Pre-series A funding locked">Pre-series A funding locked</cmsannotation> Yeshoda, 28 and Rhea, 25 aren’t just familiar with the flower industry, but also with the world of business, having worked with their father before starting Hoovu Fresh. Yeshoda, who has a Master's in Accounting and a Bachelor’s in Business Administration from Washington University in St Louis, worked as the executive director for Karuturi Global after graduation. In her role, she focused on the company’s overseas operations. Currently, she acts as the CEO of Hoovu Fresh. Rhea, who is the CTO at Hoovu Fresh, graduated from Stanford University with a Bachelor’s degree in Science, Technology and Society, with a concentration in Communication and Media. Prior to starting Hoovu Fresh with her sister, she worked with multiple publications like the Times of India, Deccan Herald, the Stanford Daily and the Bay City Beacon, among others. The Karuturi sisters are currently chasing the sweet smell of success, but Hoovu Fresh has been in the news long before Shark Tank India came knocking. Just a year after its inception, the sisters pitched Hoovu Fresh at the Techstars Bangalore Cohort in 2020. At the time, <a href="https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/this-bangalore-based-flower-delivery-start-up-is-enjoying-the-fragrance-of-success-5456931.html">Hoovu Fresh already had </a>25 employees and was doing 15,000 deliveries a month. The duo also went on to win the National FICCI Flo Incubator award for the most innovative startup. Two years later in December 2022, the startup received <a href="https://www.vccircle.com/saucevc-others-back-flower-delivery-startup-hoovu-fresh">pre-Series A funding</a> of ₹6.45 crore led by early-stage venture capital firm Sauce.VC. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/zomato-bharatpe-nykaa-and-more-the-revolving-door-for-top-execs-at-new-age-companies/articleshow/96728402.cms">Zomato, BharatPe, Nykaa and more: the revolving door for top execs at new age companies</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/indias-services-sector-growth-hits-6-month-high-in-december-on-strong-demand/articleshow/96729592.cms">India's services sector growth hits 6-month high in December on strong demand</a>

Shark Tank India judges Peyush Bansal and Aman Gupta invest in Hoovu Fresh - Here’s all about this floral startup

<ul><li><keyword id="3915307" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="stanplus" source="Orion">StanPlus</keyword> has raised $20 million to cut down its response time from 15 to eight minutes.</li><li>It has raised an additional $2 million from Grip Invest for leasing ambulances.</li><li>The company has a network of 3,000 ambulances, of which it owns 200.</li></ul>The ten-minute delivery service <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/newsletter-23-december-2021/binewsletter/88440534.cms">made all the noise in the latter half of 2021</a> with Swiggy, Grofers (now Blinkit), BigBasket and Zepto jumping on the faster delivery spree. The segment did become wilder when big gun Reliance Industries decided to jump into this segment by <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/mukesh-ambani-led-reliance-retail-has-invested-200-million-in-google-backed-dunzo/articleshow/88734641.cms">acquiring </a>a quarter of Dunzo’s business. Critics, however, rightly questioned whether 10 minutes delivery service was the absolute need especially at the time when the country is going through the worst humanitarian crisis of all time. Well this may offer a solace to them that StanPlus — a healthtech company that offers 15 minutes <keyword id="109097" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ambulance-service" source="Orion">ambulance service</keyword> — has raised $20 million to cut down its response time to eight minutes. The company also plans to use this capital to work with over 500 hospitals across 15 metro and Tier II regions of India — including Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Jaipur and Ahmedabad — in the next 18 months. It has raised an additional $2 million from Grip Invest for leasing ambulances. Founded by Prabhdeep Singh, Antoine Poirson and Jose Leon in 2016, StanPlus works with the hospitals to manage their emergency response and offers ambulance services as soon as possible. It offers software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions to the hospital and helps a hospital manage all their emergency responses. It charges these hospitals a certain subscription cost. “The big question is why should hospitals run their own call centres or their own transport systems? They don’t have their best people doing that job. During COVID-19, an average hospital responded to about 30% of their emergency calls. Non-COVID they answer over 65%. Our answer rate is 97% in under two seconds,” StanPlus’s cofounder and chief executive (CEO) Singh told Business Insider. StanPlus also helps the callers get quick response by connecting them to the nearest possible ambulance. The company has a network of 3,000 ambulances, of which it owns 200. The company’s Series A is a mix of equity and debt led by Healthquad, Kalaari Capital, and HealthX Singapore, Pegasus (Hiranandani family office), Avaana Capital’s Sandeep Singhal and serial investor Prashant Malik. The debt funding was raised from N+1 capital and Caspian. Prior to this, the company had raised $2 million in its five years of operations. The delay in ambulance services continues to be a major pain point of the Indian healthcare system. The average ambulance response time in India is 45+ minutes and that leads to a greater risk for a patient's life, Singh said. “The reason for me doing this is because I live in Hyderabad and my parents live in Chandigarh. It really worries me sick that one day there is going to be an emergency and there won't be a response system available for them. So the reason we are building this and the reason we are scaling it so quickly, so that you know we can save all our parents as and when they have an emergency in the near future,” Singh added. SEE ALSO <a class="tout-title-link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/fortune-oil-maker-adani-wilmar-to-open-its-3600-crore-ipo-on-january-27/articleshow/89033308.cms" style="">Fortune oil maker Adani Wilmar to open its ₹3,600 crore IPO on January 27</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/retail/news/hul-increased-price-of-wheel-detergent-rim-bar-lux-surf-excel-many-times-in-last-three-months/articleshow/89037315.cms" style="">You have been paying more for detergents, soaps over the last three months</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/investment/news/twitters-long-awaited-hexagonal-profile-pictures-that-give-bragging-rights-to-nft-holders-is-here-but-not-everyone-loves-it/articleshow/89042268.cms" style="">Twitter’s long-awaited hexagonal profile pictures that give bragging rights to NFT HOLDers is here — but not everyone loves it</a>

After 10-minute grocery delivery, a 15-minute ambulance service grabs investor interest

<ul><li><keyword id="2900267" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Byju">BYJU</keyword>’s has acquired US-based digital reading platform Epic, which focuses on kids under the age of 12, for $500 million.</li><li>The Indian edtech giant plans to invest about $1 billion in the US market to expand its presence globally.</li><li>The company believes that the international market would make about a third of its revenue in the next three years.</li></ul>After a decade of breaking new ground with edtech in India and garnering 100 million users globally, Bengaluru-based BYJU’s seems to be making an interesting move with its razor sharp focus on the American market. The edtech giant on Wednesday, July 21, announced that it plans to invest $1 billion in the North American market to accelerate its growth in the next two years. BYJU’s has flagged off its American expansion plan with the acquisition of US-based digital reading platform Epic, which focuses on kids under the age of 12, for $500 million. Epic runs on a subscription model that gives classrooms and families unlimited access to thousands of books, videos and quizzes. The seven-year-old American startup, founded by Suren Markosian and Kevin Donahue in 2013, has a user base of two million teachers and 50 million kids registered on the platform. The company claims to have doubled its user base from 20 million kids pre-COVID. Epic has raised about $50 million to date from institutional investors like Creative Artists Agency, Evolution Media and Reach Capital. This acquisition of Epic is in line with the plan that BYJU’s founder and chief executive officer (CEO) Byju Raveendran described in an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIe5VhDvJXU">interview </a>with Business Insider in November last year. <div type="ExtQuote" text="“It’s very different how kids learn at different level — at individual level, subject level, age level or grade level — so what we have done is that for a lot of these early-age group level we have used a lot of these movie-like or game-like interaction to make sure that they get interested in the subject. By bringing that interactive appeal, we have been able to engage, but at the end of the day we are an educational company and our core strength has been how do you simplify a concept, how do you help them visualise the context and how do you help them contextualise the concept.”" auname="Byju Raveendran, CEO of BYJU's"></div> Markosian, CEO and cofounder of Epic, told Business Insider that the vision behind building Epic was to bring books and children together through technology. The company wanted to remove all the barriers between a book and a child, and help them find the right books so that every child will be excited about reading. “And so we've built this platform where children can independently discover any book or any content they like to read. The platform makes it a lot of fun to read, and a lot of 100 discoveries, new books, or kids love using it,” Markosian said. Last year, around one billion books were read on Epic’s platform. BYJU’s looks to go big in the US market The Indian business will continue to make money from the recently-acquired Aakash, which has a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/heres-why-byjus-may-want-to-spend-a-billion-dollars-on-acquiring-aakash-educational-services/articleshow/80243456.cms">network of 200 coaching</a> institutes bought for $1 billion in <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/byjus-closes-its-deal-with-aakash-educational-services-for-nearly-1-billion/articleshow/81912772.cms">April 2021</a>. Anita Kishore, head of strategy at BYJU's told Business Insider that India will continue to be BYJU’s biggest market in terms of revenue due to the presence of BYJU’s core product offering in the country as well as because of the Akash acquisition. <div type="ExtQuote" text="Three to four years out, we would see about a third of the revenue coming from international markets," auname="Anita Kishore, head of strategy at BYJU's"></div> Kishore explained that BYJU’s is planning to focus now on the American market, as the USA is its biggest market outside of India. “The other advantage that US marketing gives us is the fact that it is English speaking, right? A lot of our products, while you know, they need to be customised, and so on. Given the language is English, we are able to actually scale those products well, with teams in India. Hence, the US has been a key market for us,” she added. WhiteHat Jr, BYJU’s other portfolio company that was acquired for <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/byjus-acquisition-of-white-hat-jr-comes-in-line-with-neps-decision-to-teach-coding-in-schools/articleshow/77384750.cms">$350 million </a>in August 2020, has been folded by BYJU’ into the BYJU’s Future School brand that will focus on international markets like the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and other English speaking markets. The offering was launched last month, with 11,000 female teachers. For this venture, WhiteHat Jr has also stepped foot outside of its traditional coding for kids offering to introduce Maths. WhiteHat Jr’s CEO and founder Karan Bajaj has been heading this vertical and will introduce other offerings Science, English, fine arts and music classes soon. Taking a step forward, BYJU’s has also launched its learning app featuring Disney characters to the US last month. The company had also acquired educational game system Osmo two-years-ago, which has now scaled about four-times, as per the pressnote by BYJU’s. Kishore further added that BYJU’s will be clocking in more than $300 million in revenue from the US market alone in the financial year 2022. Of this, BYJU’s Future School will be clocking in about $100 million+ in revenue, Epic would add another $100 million+ to it and Osmo doing another $100 million+. Notably, BYJU’s is currently the most valued edtech startup in the world and the highest valued Indian startup. The company has garnered the interest from marquee investors like Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative, Sequoia Capital India, Silver Lake, Tencent, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), General Atlantic, Tiger Global, Qatar Investment Authority and many more. The company had reported a revenue of ₹2,800 crore in the financial year ending March 2020, as its user base crossed 50 million. It has doubled its user base twice since then due to the tailwind from remote learning. SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/policybazaar-plans-to-raise-close-to-870-million-through-its-ipo-at-a-likely-valuation-of-3-5-billion/articleshow/84606274.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">PolicyBazaar plans to raise close to $870 million through its IPO at a likely valuation of $3.5 billion</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/swiggy-raises-1-25-billion-in-a-mega-round-of-funding-led-by-softbank-and-prosus/articleshow/84578974.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">Swiggy gets a $1.25 billion cheque from Softbank for the same reason Zomato went for an IPO</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/brookfield-backed-tower-infrastructure-trust-to-acquire-space-teleinfra-for-900-crore/articleshow/84585544.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">Brookfield-backed Tower Infrastructure Trust to acquire Space Teleinfra for ₹900 crore</a>

BYJU's acquires another American startup, plans to spend $1 billion on US expansion

<ul><li>As consumers started cooking or baking more evolved, gourmet dishes at home during the lockdown, <keyword id="9613152" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="britannia-cheese">Britannia Cheese</keyword> witnessed an increase in its demand. </li><li>We caught up with <keyword id="917197" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gunjan-Shah">Gunjan Shah</keyword>, CCO, <keyword id="146218" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Britannia-Industries">Britannia Industries</keyword> to understand if the brand has been able to retain the demand it saw in the beginning and how it has changed its marketing strategy in the unlocking period. </li><li>He also told us how the company transformed its business digitally during the lockdown and all about its biggest digital campaign, Britannia Cheese StarChef starring Saif Ali Khan, that brought in the highest growth for the brand till date. </li></ul>With the pandemic-induced lockdown, consumers started brushing up their cooking or baking skills and eating became more of a family exercise. It brought out people’s hidden talent for cooking, especially among the urban masses, which they were exploring only now, thanks to them staying at home and not having to travel to work everyday. In April, recipe searches also surged on the internet, as people began experimenting with a variety of cuisines ranging from the easy to the complex, gourmet varieties. Cheese became one of the ‘star ingredients.’ Britannia Cheese was quick to recognise this opportunity and it amped up its digital marketing strategy to latch onto the increasing demand for cheese, which became an integral part of consumers’ grocery list -- providing a huge impetus for the growth of the category. As a result, cheese became one of the highest growing food categories during the lockdown. As per Nielsen’s report on COVID-19 Impact on FMCG &amp; Retail, the cheese category saw a 60% growth. The report also highlighted how the rapidly evolving preference of urban consumers includes cheese as part of the monthly shopping cart. <div type="image" title="cheese trend" msid="78258099" hostid="261"></div>(Source: Nielsen RMS) Britannia Cheese saw 300% of its business coming from E-commerce during April to August. To leverage this demand, Britannia executed a three-way plan. Elaborating on the company’s digital plan, Gunjan Shah, CCO, Britannia Industries, said, “We provided ease of discoverability and convenience to new users on key ecommerce platforms like BigBasket by creating Britannia Cheese Brand stores on the home pages for an extended shop-in-shop experience. Secondly, we have tied up with several subscription-based e-commerce platforms like Milkbasket and Supr Daily, which provide daily essentials delivery services across all major metros. This helped us recruit new users, gain consumer retention and increase stickiness by incentivizing purchase frequency. Thirdly, to strengthen the last-mile delivery, we have also entered into partnerships with portals like Dunzo, Swiggy and Zomato which provide superior hyper local grocery delivery services.” Star campaign on digital mediums To become a part of people’s daily meals, Britannia Cheese launched a digital campaign with Saif Ali Khan called Britannia Cheese StarChef. The show transforms Khan into a StarChef as he learns to cook from MasterChef winner Shipra Khanna. It targeted newbie cooks and keen learners and provided easy-to-cook recipes. Sharing the insight behind the campaign, Shah said, “The dramatic rise in in-home cooking since the outbreak of the pandemic, was the key trend that informed the making of the show. We worked on the insight that every home chef is looking for extraordinary dishes that makes her a star in the kitchen! And Cheese is the magical ingredient that has the power to help make those dishes. The adage ‘Life is great, Cheese makes it better!’quite sums up the universal love for cheese. The Britannia Cheese StarChef show hones in on Cheese as that special, star ingredient that turns a good dish into a dish extraordinaire.” It soon became the company's best performing digital campaign. Shah said, “The Campaign was significant on two fronts- first, it is the largest single brand Digital Campaign that Britannia has ever embarked upon and second it has performed the best in terms of the metrics that we track for our digital investments. The Click throughs achieved on our promos have been between 200-250% of the industry benchmarks and the campaign has helped drive a significant spike in growth for Britannia Cheese Year till date. The overwhelming response to the campaign made us take it to mainstream TV media towards the end of August.” Altering marketing strategy with changing times The lockdown period proved to be challenging for companies across business verticals in India. There was no rulebook in place for an unprecedented situation such as a pandemic. However, Britannia Cheese understood the magnitude of the situation. To seize the opportunity, it altered its strategies and concentrated on achieving short-term goals. Sharing how the company responded to lockdown, Shah said, “First and foremost, we responded quickly to the changing consumer preferences by keeping our ears on the ground. The Britannia Dairy Team reached out to over 500 retailers in the first month of the lockdown, analyzed the demand-supply situation and the swiftly emerging consumer trends. Anticipating a rapid uptick in cheese consumption, we worked with our manufacturers to ramp up supply by removing bottlenecks and increasing the supply of the fastest moving formats like Cheese Slices, Cubes, Blocks and ‘Cheezza’. Secondly, on the field, we focused on Pareto outlets to ensure that we get a massive increase in throughput from the same stores. We also mapped geographies displaying a huge shift in consumer awareness and adoption to increase our width and depth of distribution of cheese, in the process leading to a sustained growth in our cheese business and growing revenue from E-commerce by over 300% (Apr-Aug’20).” Changing consumer preferences after lockdown Globally, more than <a href="https://www.marketresearchreports.com/blog/2020/07/07/cheese-market-india-leading-players-industry">3,000</a> varieties of cheese are available for consumption, whereas only about 30 to 40 variants are marketed in India. With the changing preference, this presents a huge opportunity for global and local players to grow in the country. As we start entering the unlock phases, the consumer is demanding a range of products to experiment with. Britannia Cheese is also working on expanding its portfolio to meet this demand. “We have put the focus on new outlets and towns and will scale up both range and depth to ensure that we are ahead of the curve, while continuing to tap the potential of e-commerce platforms. Driving availability of even smaller SKUs like Spreads and Cream Cheese is becoming more important and hence, Britannia is driving the width of availability,” said Shah. “The extended stay-at-home period has led to consumers learning how to use the many available cheese formats for the first time. This has led to inorganic business growth in new stores and new towns. Post unlock phase, it’s imperative for us to nurture these stores and towns through loyalty programs, tracking and monitoring,” added Shah. On the brand’s unlocking strategy, Shah said, “With demand stabilizing, the market is again becoming competitive and hence there is a need to increase investment in the ATL and BTL space. We have now taken Britannia Cheese StarChef content on to TV which still delivers the widest reach for us. We have also increased our in –store investment.” Britannia’s focus is going to be on staying agile and invested in making the most out of the behavioral shifts and macro consumer trends. Vision for the brand Britannia is currently the second-largest player in the Rs 850+ crore Indian retail cheese category. Even post-COVID, it aims to be the consumers’ most preferred ally for culinary experimentation. “We will continue to build preference for Britannia Cheese. In the past few years, a lot of consumers have made us an integral part of their cooking forays and celebrations. We value this and are committed to stay invested with a unique positioning and taste delivery, peerless quality and easy accessibility. We aim to build an ever-expanding consumer franchise firmly rooted in their passion point of cooking,” said Shah.

Strategy behind Britannia Cheese’s 300% growth in online sales between April and August 2020

<ul><li>While safety was always important for the brand, it has now put in place additional safety procedures at its manufacturing facilities including ozone tunnels for disinfecting employees, among other things. </li><li>The brand is also focusing on its direct-to-home offering. It also launched its e-commerce platform to improve accessibility to consumers. </li><li><keyword id="7778097" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Angelo-George">Angelo George</keyword>, CEO, <keyword id="140687" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bisleri-International">Bisleri International</keyword> tells us all that the brand has been doing to make sure it is able to deliver safe drinking water to its consumers, while ensuring its employees are safe too.</li></ul>Before the pandemic hit us, the <keyword id="140685" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="bottled-water">bottled water</keyword> industry in India had been seeing a healthy 20% growth and was expected to reach Rs 403.06 billion by the end of 2023, according to a report by Research and Markets. However, as the lockdown has led to the closure of offices and most public spaces, the industry has been hit. With hotels, restaurants and cafes (HoReCa) businesses majorly affected and there being no clarity as to when things will get back to normal, with demand coming back, the bottled water industry has also hit a major roadblock. However, one trend that the industry has been witnessing is an increase in the demand for <keyword id="97696" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mineral-Water">mineral water</keyword> in homes. With more and more people staying back home and becoming increasingly conscious about what they consume, more people are ordering mineral water for even home consumption. We recently spoke to Angelo George, CEO, Bisleri International, who told us that the pandemic has made them focus on their digital presence. The brand is now connecting with consumers digitally and also working hard to facilitate supply even in locations with travel constraints or for places within containment zones. While sanitation and hygiene has also been always critical for the brand, now its mineral water goes through 10 Step Quality Process &amp; 114 tests to ensure safety. Excerpts: Q) We are living in unprecedented times today. How challenging were the initial lockdown days for Bisleri as a brand? The initial stage of the lockdown was quite challenging as processes related to operating permissions for factories, passes for people and finished goods movement were being put into place. It was a time that tested the resilience of the supply chain, distribution network and our ability to adapt and respond dynamically to constraints that were evolving almost on a daily basis. We transitioned to a remote working environment in offices, and yet had to keep our operations running strong. We worked closely with all stakeholders to sustain production and distribution despite constraints. In many states, the Government officials were helpful in facilitating permissions considering that we were classified in the essential services. In spite of all the challenges, the supplies were maintained across all markets, and we ensured consumers had access to safe mineral water. Our sales teams took appropriate safety precautions, braved the risks and delivered Bisleri mineral water to the doorsteps of consumers. Q) Is your supply chain up and running completely? Yes absolutely. In fact we have streamlined our supply chain in response to the growing at home demand for mineral water and other fruit based fizzy drinks. We understood the challenges consumers were facing on ground on account of lockdown and enhanced our servicing ability through direct home delivery. We are working hand-in-hand with our distribution partners who have supported us despite immense challenges on ground. We are connecting with consumers through digital platforms and are facilitating supply even in those locations with travel constraints or are even within containment zones. Most importantly, Bisleri has over 135 manufacturing plants across the country which enables us to service our consumers across all parts of the country. Q) What kind of business impact has the lockdown had on Bisleri? Is there a hope of recovering this year? The segments that are mainly affected are those related to ‘Out of home consumption’ – Horeca, Offices, Entertainment &amp; Travel which contributes a significant share of our business. Offices and shops will gradually start to open up but will take time to become fully active. However, there has been a clear surge in the consumption of mineral water at homes, and this is primarily led by the large packs. Q) People will now be doubly more cognizant about hygiene. How are you making your factories and thereby your products safer? The hygiene and safety norms at our manufacturing units were always in place. Our production and packaging is completely contactless and our mineral water goes through 10 Step Quality Process &amp; 114 tests to ensure that every consumer receives the same pure, safe and healthy drinking water. In light of Covid we have put additional safety procedures at our manufacturing facilities including ozone tunnels for disinfecting employees in the light of COVID. All distribution vehicles are washed externally with soap &amp; sprayed internally with IPA to sanitize after each trip. We have provided protective gear to delivery teams including Gloves, Masks and Sanitizers and have instituted processes to ensure safety for themselves and for consumers and trade. Q) As a leader, what were your learnings from this time? This crisis has no doubt been one the most difficult phases but it has also been an opportunity for me to take more risks, think beyond the limits, work with my team even more closely and lead with a purpose to cater to the needs of the consumers, who have made Bisleri one of the most trusted brands in India. Q) You have recently partnered with Dunzo and Zomato to strengthen your direct to home strategy. How else do you plan to reach your consumers? Will partnerships like this become normal for you in the new world order? The demand for mineral water is increasing and to cater to this demand we have formed strategic partnerships with delivery providers like Zomato, Swiggy, Dunzo and OwO across cities to leverage their reach. Bisleri itself has a very strong distribution network and we have streamlined it to enable Bisleri@Doorstep, an ecom portal to ensure delivery service encouraging consumers to stay at home and order their requirements online. Q) You have launched a D2C campaign called Bisleri@Doorstep where consumers can place orders directly by calling customer service number or by visiting your website. Do you think it will still take people some time to get used to the idea of ordering for water online? How are you planning to bring about this behavioural change? On account of lockdown, there were heavy restrictions imposed on movement of people and consumers were facing many challenges in accessing even basic needs like safe drinking water. We shouldn’t forget that there is great emphasis on hydration as a critical aspect for building immunity. In our commitment to fulfill the increasing demand for safe and healthy drinking water, we introduced the direct-to-home approach where consumers across cities could opt to order directly by contacting Bisleri’s customer care toll free number or sending in their requirement through the website. We received an overwhelming response from the consumers and were able to supply in areas where even shops providing essential items were closed. Consumers have placed enormous trust on Bisleri as a brand and we were able to respond to their expectations with our service reassurance. As part of the larger initiative, we were also educating consumers about how hydration plays a key role in keeping one healthy and boosting immunity. Minerals and trace elements in water is also essential for health which one may not find in tap water or commonly used purification methods like RO &amp; UV purifiers. Q) You have enabled your own e-commerce platform. Was this done specifically during and due to the lockdown? What kind of uptake have you seen on the website? What kind of push do you plan to give to the platform? Consumer behaviour has undergone a dramatic change with the COVID-19 pandemic, and there is a heightened concern on safety and health.We have gathered valuable consumer insights to develop appropriate offerings. We were always planning to launch our e-commerce platform but with the current situation and the constraints faced by consumers, the team turned things around very quickly to launch it well in time. With social-distancing becoming the new norm, there was a shift to online shopping and digital platforms even in the groceries and beverages categories. Through our latest offering, we want to offer convenience to consumers to access a range of Bisleri products, avail discounts and sign up for weekly and monthly subscriptions to get hassle free uninterrupted supplies.

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