Distribution startup Ripplr raises $12 million in debt, equity

Mumbai: Distribution and logistics startup Ripplr has raised $12 million (around Rs 90 crore) in a funding round with a mix of equity and debt from Japanese firm Sojitz Corporation and Stride Ventures. The pre-series- B funding round also saw participation from existing investors 3one4 Capital, Zephyr Peacock India Growth Fund, and Chand Family Office.

The Bengaluru startup had raised $3 million series-A round in January 2021.

Angels who support early-stage investments such as the Licious founders Vivek and Abhay; and the Kaleyra founders Aniketh and Ashish, also participated, the Bengaluru startup said.

The Ripplr cofounders Abhishek Nehru and Santosh Dabke told PTI that they will use $12 million to build and scale up an asset-light and tech-enabled FMCG distribution network. This will involve entering new geographies and building robust tech capabilities, product development, attracting new talent.

Set up in 2019 Ripplr is a plug-n-play integrated distribution network for brands offering distribution as a service (DaaS) to brands and supports brands in managing and digitising distributor operations, financial and backend operations, creating visibility, and a management layer for logistics.

Its distribution network has 10 micro warehouses across Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Delhi-NCR, Pune, and Hubli and coverers around 30,000 retailers having long-term partnerships with all major FMCG brands like HUL, Britannia, ITC, Reckitt Benkiser, Godrej, Dabur, and Nivea among others. And we want to make our platform reach out to 100 cities covering 1 lakh retailers over the next 12 months.