Indian home services marketplace Urban Company raises $255m at $2.1b valuation

Home services marketplace Urban Company has raised $255 million in a Series F funding round led by Prosus Ventures, Dragoneer and Wellington Management, it announced on Wednesday.

The round also saw participation of Vy Capital, Tiger Global and Steadview, the Gurugram-headquartered startup said in a statement.

According to a report in The Economic Times, the startup also plans to go public in the next 18-24 months.

The latest round, which has valued Urban Company at $2.1 billion, includes a primary capital infusion of $188 million and a secondary sale of approximately $67 million by select angels and early investors.

Urban Company said it will utilise the new investment towards innovation, training, product development, enhanced quality control and safety measures for both partners and consumers. The company also aims to increase its geographic footprint by entering the top 100 cities in India and further expanding into international markets.

“It is the trust our consumers and 35,000 service partners have in us that makes Urban Company Asia’s largest home services marketplace. With this funding, we plan to rapidly scale our business while continuing to invest further in the safety of our consumers and service partners, training of partners and product development,” Urban Company CEO and co-founder Abhiraj Singh Bhal said.

Founded in November 2014, Urban Company offers services such as beauty and spa at home, cleaning, plumbing, carpentry, appliance repair,
painting, etc. through its mobile app and website. It has more than 35,000 service partners across 35 cities in India, the UAE, Singapore, Australia and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The startup had reported a 103% year-on-year rise in revenue to Rs216 crore in FY20 on account of demand in its beauty and wellness vertical.

Urban Company is the latest addition to a growing list Indian unicorns. The country has produced a total of 14 unicorns till date this year including banking tech startup Zeta, industrial equipment marketplace Moglix, social media platform ShareChat, fintech startup CRED, social commerce startup Meesho, and online pharmacy Pharmeasy, among others.

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