Exclusive: Online grocery ordering app BigZop raising $600K in seed funding

Gurgaon-based hyperlocal grocery delivery startup BigZop is raising around Rs 3.9 crore ($600,000) in seed funding from a group of investment bankers based in Delhi and Bangalore, co-founder of the firm told VCCircle/Techcircle.in.

The company, which was launched in June, will be using the money for expansion to more areas in north India and even in eastern parts of the country by the end of this year.

"We are raising the money as we are looking for expansion to Noida, Faridabad and Ghaziabad in Delhi-NCR. Besides, this fund will help us enter the markets in Chandigarh, Jaipur and Lucknow. In the east, we want to set up our operations in Kolkata," said Aaditya Goyal, co-founder of the company. He declined to name the investors, saying the deal is yet to close.

An IIT Kharapur alumnus, Goyal floated the venture along with his classmates Mayank Bana and Subhajit Ray. The firm offers 3,500+ items from categories ranging from fruits & vegetables, grocery, beverages, personal care, household and dairy.

"We have a curated inventory based model. We have tie-ups with seven vendors at present. We procure items from them and deliver it to consumer's doorstep at their convenient time slots," said Goyal.

The company claims it has been entertaining 100+ orders/day for the last two months.

Goyal, who had earlier worked with Tracxn and Sigmoid Analytics, said that the firm has divided Gurgaon into four sub-zones to optimally manage logistics. It is also eyeing an Uber-like platform for deliveries where riders can sign up and show themselves available for delivering products.

The company, which has seven employees currently, is also looking to hire people by the end of this year. "We are looking to hire 30 odd people, especially in the technology department," he said.

The hyperlocal grocery and food ordering space has seen a bunch of startups enter the market and many have raised funding in the past, including Grofers, Peppertap, LocalBanya, Myonsto and iOrderFresh. Most of them are aggregators who essentially provide an online platform to order from local vendors.

The biggest in the e-grocery space is BigBasket, which has just raised $50 million more from Bessemer Venture Partners, among others. It has an inventory based model.