Google invests $50-$75 million in Social Commerce Firm Meesho
Google has invested $50-$75 million in social commerce firm Meesho, as the internet search giant continues to back promising Indian businesses such as Dunzo, a hyperlocal delivery service, and InMobi's lock screen platform Glance.
Meesho's recent financing round included the investment, which valued the Bengaluru-based company at $4.9 billion.
Meesho raised $570 million in September from Fidelity Investments and Eduardo Saverin's B Capital. Google investment will take the round worth over $600 million.
Meesho has raised over $900 million in funding so far this year, including $300 million from SoftBank Vision Fund II in April.
Google has made a number of investments in India, most notably through its $10 billion India Digitization Fund, which was unveiled in July of last year. Simsim, a video social commerce firm, was acquired by Google's YouTube video sharing platform in July.
Meesho plans to leverage the new funding to grow into a consumer-facing e-commerce company that can compete effectively with Amazon India and Walmart-owned Flipkart.
Meesho was founded in 2015 by Vidit Aatrey and Sanjeev Barnwal as a social commerce reseller network, with a huge base of women resellers selling products in the low-end, unbranded, and long-tail ecommerce segments.
Meesho's aspirations to compete in the big league were evident after SoftBank's funding infusion, and it has since been actively investing on marketing and personally reaching out to consumers.
The social commerce startup competes in a market with a slew of well-funded competitors, including DealShare, which is backed by New York-based investment firm Tiger Global and competes in the grocery area, and Sea Ltd's e-commerce platform Shopee, which recently joined the Indian market. Shopee.in sells unbranded clothing and home products, as well as a limited assortment of consumables and staple foods.
Meesho shifted to a zero-commission scheme earlier this year in order to attract more merchants to its site. Meesho onboarded over 100,000 businesses ahead of the holiday season through efforts such as free ad credits and no return shipping fees.
Meesho's recent financing round included the investment, which valued the Bengaluru-based company at $4.9 billion.
Meesho raised $570 million in September from Fidelity Investments and Eduardo Saverin's B Capital. Google investment will take the round worth over $600 million.
Meesho has raised over $900 million in funding so far this year, including $300 million from SoftBank Vision Fund II in April.
Google has made a number of investments in India, most notably through its $10 billion India Digitization Fund, which was unveiled in July of last year. Simsim, a video social commerce firm, was acquired by Google's YouTube video sharing platform in July.
Meesho plans to leverage the new funding to grow into a consumer-facing e-commerce company that can compete effectively with Amazon India and Walmart-owned Flipkart.
Meesho was founded in 2015 by Vidit Aatrey and Sanjeev Barnwal as a social commerce reseller network, with a huge base of women resellers selling products in the low-end, unbranded, and long-tail ecommerce segments.
Meesho's aspirations to compete in the big league were evident after SoftBank's funding infusion, and it has since been actively investing on marketing and personally reaching out to consumers.
The social commerce startup competes in a market with a slew of well-funded competitors, including DealShare, which is backed by New York-based investment firm Tiger Global and competes in the grocery area, and Sea Ltd's e-commerce platform Shopee, which recently joined the Indian market. Shopee.in sells unbranded clothing and home products, as well as a limited assortment of consumables and staple foods.
Meesho shifted to a zero-commission scheme earlier this year in order to attract more merchants to its site. Meesho onboarded over 100,000 businesses ahead of the holiday season through efforts such as free ad credits and no return shipping fees.
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