Bangalore-based Aspada Investment Company that provides growth capital to early stage businesses has made a commitment to invest over $2 million in Mumbai-based Schedulers Logistics, an integrated cold-chain trucking operator that provides end-to-end cold storage and secondary distribution for fresh fruit & vegetable, food processing and pharmaceutical industries.
Aspada primarily provides funding in sectors like healthcare delivery, agricultural supply chains, education, logistics and financial services. It is a permanent capital vehicle anchored with a significant commitment from Soros Economic Development Fund.
“We are thrilled to be working with Aspada as its investment will allow us to increase our presence in underserved regions, such as the eastern and north-eastern states”, said Colonel Arvind Gangoly, CEO, Schedulers Logistics.
Schedulers Logistics plans to increase its fleet of part-truck-load and secondary distribution vehicles to connect small manufacturers with major market hubs.
“We believe that the cold chain market in India will grow at a brisk pace over the next five to eight years and offer opportunities for consolidation and professionalisation in what is a highly unorganised space. We are excited to partner with the Schedulers team in its journey to build a large organisation that will have high impact on food and pharmaceutical supply chains in India”, said Tom Hyland, partner, Aspada Investment Advisors.
Aspada Investment Company is a holding company backed with a significant commitment from Soros Economic Development Fund. In April 2013, Aspada invested in end-to-end fresh vegetable supply chain company Lawrencedale Agroprocessing India, which aggregates produce and sells to retail consumers in major markets under the LEAF brand.
Earlier this year, Aspada invested in ThinkLink Supply Chain Services that provides turnkey project management, design, skill development and staffing services to logistics and supply chain sectors.
Aspada has also recently made an investment in NeoGrowth Credit, a merchant cash advance business that provides loans to small merchants in India. In addition, Aspada oversees the portfolio of SONG Fund, an early stage venture capital firm funded by Soros Economic Development Fund, Omidyar Network and Google.
(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)