Unilever Ventures, the investment arm of consumer packaged goods company Unilever Plc,
has led a $10.5-million investment in Gurgaon-based grocery delivery startup Milkbasket.
Other investors who participated in the latest round of funding include Mayfield India, Kalaari Capital and Blume Ventures, besides a few Indian family offices.
“While the industry is witnessing a number of players adopting our model, this funding – our largest fund infusion till date – is a testament to our robust execution, the team and continued trust of our investors in the growth of Milkbasket,” said Anant Goel, co-founder and CEO of Milkbasket, in a statement.
Established in 2015, Milkbasket follows a hybrid business model of having an inventory and marketplace. Besides milk, it offers perishables and grocery items. Currently, over 70 per cent of the startup’s revenues come from non-milk products.
So far, the startup has raised about $26 million (about Rs 180 crore) in equity funding from a slew of investors including Mayfield Advisors, Beenext, Kalaari Capital, Unilever Ventures, Lenovo Capital (LCIH), Blume Ventures and a few family offices.
“We are steadily and surely moving towards our goal of achieving $1 billion annual recurring revenue in 2021. Together with investing in talent and geographic expansion, Milkbasket continues to invest in customer-centric innovation, and this funding will help us focus on all the three areas to build a national market leader in online grocery,” Goel added.
The startup, which currently delivers in Bangalore, Dwarka, Ghaziabad, Greater Noida, Hyderabad and Noida, was recently in the news when it secured a $2.8-million funding from Flipkart co-founder Sachin Bansal, who made the investment through BAC Acquisitions.