Supply chain management platform Blubirch, homegrown beer brand Proost Beer, drone maker Garuda Aerospace, climatetech startup Olive Gaea and employer of record platform Rapid have raised early-stage funding, the companies said on Wednesday.
Blubirch has raised $6.37 million (Rs 53 crore) in a Series A funding round from Cornerstone Venture Partners and Capital2B.
Till date, the startup has raised $10.2 million in total funding.
The Bengaluru-based startup will deploy the fresh proceeds to expand its presence across various retailer marketplaces and original equipment manufacturers ecosystems as well as increase its reach across India and overseas.
Founded in 2014 by Sapan Jain, Jeby Cherian and Amit Goel, Blubirch’s solutions suite helps stakeholders across the reverse supply chain to identify invalid returns at source and manage the automated processing of returns at scale, including — customer returns, dealer returns, e-commerce returns as well as warranty claims, lease returns or internal returns.
"The funds will be deployed towards improving product development, increasing acquisition of India-based talent, expanding regional operational capabilities, and accelerating market penetration, “ said Jain.
Garuda Aerospace
Garuda Aerospace has raised $3 million (Rs 25 crore) in a bridge funding round co-led by Venture Catalysts and WeFounderCircle.
The round also saw participation from Hems Angels, San Angels, Peaceful Progress Funds, and undisclosed angel investors.
The money will be used for working capital requirements and for ensuring execution of the strategic partnership with IFFCO and their drone order along with fulfilling the pre-booked orders from dealers across the country.
Founded in 2015 by Agnishwar Jayaprakash, Garuda Aerospace is a Chennai-based drone maker that designs and manufactures precision agriculture drones.
In February, it raised $22 million (around Rs 182 crore) in a Series A round, led by early-stage venture capital company SphitiCap. The round, which also saw participation from other global investors, angel investors and high net worth individuals (HNIs), pegged the company's valuation at $250 million.
Proost Beer
Proost Beer, operated by Grano69 Beverages Pvt Ltd, has closed its pre-Series A funding round at $3 million (Rs 25 crore) through a mix of equity and debt infusion.
The round saw investments from new as well as existing investors including Chimes Group, Dev Punj, The Chennai Angels, Finvolve, India Accelerator, Hyderabad Angels, Mumbai Angels, Angel List India, and Agility Ventures.
The funding will be deployed to improve Proost’s production capabilities and expansion into new markets.
"We are optimistic about the industry's growth potential, driven by the consumer appetite for quality products. With this funding, we anticipate achieving 300% growth," said Vijay P. Sharma, co-founder and managing director, Proost Beer.
Founded in 2017, Proost Beer has a presence in Delhi, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Kerala. It uses high-quality, locally sourced raw materials and is completely made in India.
Olive Gaea has raised $1 million (Rs 8.3 crore) in a funding round from Cornerstone Ventures.
The startup will use the capital to launch its software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform, 'Zero by Olive Gaea,', thus extending Olive Gaea's market presence across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and India.
Olive Gaea is a climatetech platform for carbon accounting, decarbonization, and net zero. It provides consulting services spanning from greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions accounting and reduction strategies to carbon offsetting and life cycle analysis. Olive Gaea also provides carbon-neutral application programming interfaces (APIs) solutions helping e-commerce and logistics companies to offer carbon-neutral delivery options to their customers.
Rapid has raised 265,000 (Rs 2.2 crore) in an ongoing pre-seed funding round from angel investors like Aswin Choudhury, Deepak Panda, Ashok Padhy, Hemanth Kavuluru.
The fresh funds will be deployed for product development and early customer acquisition.
Founded by Navin Rungta, Rapid is an employer of record platform which helps global start-ups create their Indian team rapidly, without a legal entity. It offers value propositions like compliant office spaces, equipment procurement, passthrough tax benefits, customized brand experience, and innovative services marketplace, amongst others.
“Investment in Rapid validates the business model and the challenges we are trying to solve. The funding will be utilized strategically for product and early customer acquisition,” said Rungta.
