Over 70% of Bikayi-registered SMBs are from tier-2 cities
MUMBAI, Oct 29 (The CONNECT) - Amid the on-going festive season, mobile mobile-commerce enabler Bikayi, saw a massive 30% increase in its merchant base taking the total customer base to 4.5 million. A lot of sellers from the electronics category were able to do more than Rs.1 crore of sales in last one month. The highest GMV of Bikayi’s merchant has been Rs.10 crore.
Interestingly, over 70% of these SMB – small and medium business - entrepreneurs belong to tier 2 cities, indicating the growing digital adoption in these areas. A majority of these entrepreneurs are from the age group of 22-29 years, both salaried and self-employed individuals, who are either first or second generation entrepreneurs.
The start-up said electronics has been the most popular businesses on the platform in the on-going season, followed by apparels and food items. Other businesses like furniture, gifting items, handicrafts have also started picking up. Consumers are seeking distinguished and unique products and that has given a boost to many small businesses on Bikayi’s platform.
Sonakshi Nathani, Co-founder & CEO, Bikayi said, “Post the second wave of Covid, the economy is gradually coming back to its feet on the back of a massive inoculation drive initiated by the government. We are elated to see the rapid growth in our merchant base, majority belonging to tier 2-3 cities.”
Merchants today, she said, are looking for a trustworthy platform that can help them reach their product offerings to last mile consumer. Bikayi has helped merchants to scale their Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) on an average by 40% in last one month of the festive season. “With Diwali and other festivities in the coming months, we are expecting a 25% growth in our merchant base and 80% growth in our GMV”, she said.
Founded in 2019, Bikayi enables SMBs to scale up on digital platforms thereby enabling them to reach out to a wider audience base. The platform provides businesses with a digital storefront, professional features, and tools to help them grow. Some of the features include a Dedicated Business Coach, Catalogue Listing, Shipping Facility, Payments, and also Insights on Customer Behaviour to manage their e-commerce stores through a single platform.
Last month, Bikayi raised $10.8 million in Series-A funding round led by Sequoia Capital India. Earlier in August 2020, the company had raised $2 million as a part of its seed round of funding led by Y Combinator.
Bikayi is a fast-growing mobile mobile-commerce enablers offering India’s aspiring SMBs a digital platform to reach a wider scale of audience. Founded in 2019 by IIITians Sonakshi Nathani and Ashutosh Singla, the Whatsapp-integrated platform provides businesses with a digital storefront, professional features, and tools to help them grow. Some of the features include a Dedicated Business Coach, Catalogue Listing, Shipping Facility, Payments, and also insights on customer behaviour to manage their e-commerce stores through a single platform.
