Srikanth
Peel-works, a B2B grocery e-commerce Company which operates through the app, “Taikee”, plans to raise Rs 225 crore to expand its business in Tier 2 & 3 cities and establish its footprints beyond 10 major cities where it currently operates in.
The Mumbai headquartered Company that primarily facilitates FMCG and consumer goods distribution to Corner stores across India has witnessed its turnover increasing by 20 per cent month on month after the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. As the heart of traditional FMCG retail lies in the nooks and corners of every Indian cities, the Company is expanding its operations beyond metro cities to tap into a larger retailer network and provide them with a wide assortment at great prices, faster fulfillment and credit at good rates via its App ‘Taikee’.
Founded in 2010, Peel-Works has been analysing and working with the traditional grocery retail industry since its inception and launched their tech enabled B2B platform- Taikee to provide solutions to major market challenges faced by the humble and omnipresent kirana store owners. The platform already has a network of more than 20,000 retailers spread across 10 cities. Since inception the Company has raised more than Rs 100 crore from various investors, including Chiratae, Inventus Capital, HDFC Bank, Unilever Ventures, Indian Angel Network, Equanimity, and a few more.
The demand for Taikee increased exponentially during the ongoing pandemic as CornerStore owners set to find a solution for the supply chain disruptions. The lockdown resulted in overstocking by end consumers putting the pressure of fulfilment on neighbourhood corner stores. With an increased demand for new product categories like sanitizers, masks and other hygiene items that needed frequent replenishment, retailers adopted e-commerce distribution platforms on a massive scale.
“The pandemic has shown the potential of a B2B marketplace attracting multiple new players in the industry. With our years of experience, we aim to scale our operations to 30 cities and onboard one lakh retailers by 2021. We will need both equity and debt funding to expand Taikee. We are looking to raise USD 30 million,” Peel-Works founder Sachin Chhabra said.
He said the company would focus on building an extensive assortment of products to drive higher profitability for corner stores.
“Corner Stores have ensured a smooth and uninterrupted supply of goods to its customers during this pandemic. We pride ourselves in having played an important role in making inventory available in time and at great prices to our retail partners,” Chhabra said.
Chhabra also highlighted that packaged foods, health and personal care, home cleaning and sanitation products are high in demand. Demand for family pack size SKUs (stock keeping units) has also increased considerably.
During the early days of the lockdown, Taikee, supported corner stores by increasing the number of fulfilment centres, sourcing directly from brands and adding a mix of known and new local labels as its partners like Tjori Hand Sanitizers, Nutramantra Sanitizers, Unibic, Marico, Himalaya, Gold Winner, Mother Dairy and Sundrop among many others. In doing so, Taikee has been able to meet the increasing demands of its consumer’s consumer.
With a deep understanding of the various financial and logistical challenges faced by the Indian grocery retail landscape, Taikee by Peel-Works has dedicated itself to provide better lives to corner stores. Sachin says that Taikee is working relentlessly towards providing a wider assortment across FMCG categories, making credit available to retailers at a fair cost and increasing their profitability. With its expansion plans, Taikee will embark on a journey to multiply its network.
