Video commerce app Simsim raises Series B from return backers Shunwei Capital, Accel

SZS Tech, the Delhi-based company that owns and operates video commerce app Simsim, has raised $8.2 million from returning investors Shunwei Capital Partners and Accel India Management in a Series B funding round. 

The latest infusion takes the total capital raised by the company to $16 million across three rounds in less than two years of inception, said a statement issued by the company. 

The company had last raised $6.08 million in Series A round from Shunwei, Accel, Good Capital Partners and angel investor, Sunil Kalra in November 2019. 

The company will use the capital to strengthen the technology platform and expand its influencer base which makes video content around products available on the company’s catalogue. 

“We have three separate platforms -- one for consumers, other for influencers whom we call ‘Community opinion leader’ or COLs and the merchants who upload their products on our catalogue. It is a big part of our expenditure. We would also deploy capital to grow the base of COLs from 1200 today to 1 lakh over the next two years,” Amit Bagaria, co-founder of Simsim told TechCircle.

Founded in 2018 by Bagaria, Kunal Suri and Saurabh Vashishtha, the platform currently hosts video content created by 1,200 COLs in Hindi, English, Telugu and Bengali. It charges commissions from merchants per transaction and pays a percentage to the COL for each transaction on the page.

“We want the COLs to treat their page as their own store and they can choose products they want to sell. Our recommendation logic pushes product suggestions which are likely to do well on the COL page,” said Bagaria, adding that the company works as a marketplace with brands, manufacturers and wholesale operators.

The platform claims that 70% of sales originate from outside the top 10 metros.

Content based ecommerce companies have seen an uptick in investor interest over the last year, with established ecommerce entities such as Myntra looking to foray into the space. In March, 2019 influencer-driven ecommerce app Bulbul Shopping Network raised $2.03 million from a group of investors In December 2019 local language lifestyle video app Trell raised $2 million frpom Fosun RZ and other investors.