Last mile Distribution Platform Xpand raises $1.5 million led by several HNIs
Xpand, a last-mile distribution company, announced that it has raised $1.5 million in a pre-Series A funding round from numerous high-net-worth individuals (HNIs). Xpand's worth has risen to $10 million as a result of the fundraising.
Akash Prakash, chief executive officer of Amansa Capital, led the round with a personal investment.
The funds raised will be used to improve the company's in-house IT skills and to develop a skilled, tech-savvy, and efficient geo-local sales force.
Xpand, which has been around for eight months, is a business-to-business (B2B) aggregator that connects merchants, franchises, and businesses with kiranas to help them increase their reach. The platform makes use of existing infrastructure and requires no stock, warehousing, or logistics investments.
“With Xpand, we are connecting retailers and companies on a single platform to solve their last-mile challenges. Simultaneously, we would empower and enable traditional kiranas to leverage technology to streamline their operations and widen their portfolio. We have already made substantial investment in the pre-incorporation stage towards technology and market prioritization," said Sanjay Kaul, founder and chief executive officer, LMCE.
Kaul, the former chairman of the Impact Group of Companies, established Last Mile Channel Enhancement (LMCE), a B2B aggregation platform for companies that maintains its own mobile application, Xpand, earlier this year.
“Xpand is built on three core fundamentals - ‘where to play, how to play, and digital disruption’ across the value chain - the app analyzes, predicts, and recommends consumer behavior. The process is based on the data collected from 2.5 lakh rural stores to brands, distributors, and local kirana stores," Nikhil Kaul, chief operating officer (COO), LMCE.
By 2023, the Xpand platform hopes to have expanded to 16 states, 30,000 villages, and over 3 lakh retailers. It also intends to increase its position in rural India by expanding to at least 18% of kirana stores and scaling up to 33% of total potential by 2025. According to Kaul.
Akash Prakash, chief executive officer of Amansa Capital, led the round with a personal investment.
The funds raised will be used to improve the company's in-house IT skills and to develop a skilled, tech-savvy, and efficient geo-local sales force.
Xpand, which has been around for eight months, is a business-to-business (B2B) aggregator that connects merchants, franchises, and businesses with kiranas to help them increase their reach. The platform makes use of existing infrastructure and requires no stock, warehousing, or logistics investments.
“With Xpand, we are connecting retailers and companies on a single platform to solve their last-mile challenges. Simultaneously, we would empower and enable traditional kiranas to leverage technology to streamline their operations and widen their portfolio. We have already made substantial investment in the pre-incorporation stage towards technology and market prioritization," said Sanjay Kaul, founder and chief executive officer, LMCE.
Kaul, the former chairman of the Impact Group of Companies, established Last Mile Channel Enhancement (LMCE), a B2B aggregation platform for companies that maintains its own mobile application, Xpand, earlier this year.
“Xpand is built on three core fundamentals - ‘where to play, how to play, and digital disruption’ across the value chain - the app analyzes, predicts, and recommends consumer behavior. The process is based on the data collected from 2.5 lakh rural stores to brands, distributors, and local kirana stores," Nikhil Kaul, chief operating officer (COO), LMCE.
By 2023, the Xpand platform hopes to have expanded to 16 states, 30,000 villages, and over 3 lakh retailers. It also intends to increase its position in rural India by expanding to at least 18% of kirana stores and scaling up to 33% of total potential by 2025. According to Kaul.
