Times Internet Ltd (TIL), the digital network of Bennett, Coleman & Co Ltd (BCCL), has acquired Get Me A Shop (GMAS), an enablement platform for small businesses, for an undisclosed amount.
“We have helped hundreds of customers across multiple verticals. With Times Internet, we hope to reach scale with the extensive network of businesses they work with,†said Pushkal Srivastava, founder, GMAS.
The funds will be used for product development and scale up operations, GMAS said in a statement.
“Get Me a Shop enables merchants across all segments participate in the e-commerce revolution in India,†said Miten Sampat, vice president, corporate development, Times Internet.
Founded in 2014, GMAS helps offline businesses create and manage their own website and mobile applications without any technical knowhow. The platform also lets businesses and individuals such as designers, retailers, restaurants, etc., set up an online store with online payments facility and on-demand logistic services.
Once online, the management dashboards provides a host of business metrics, information and add-on services including built-in analytics, inventory management, marketing campaigns via sms, e-mail, social accounts and customer engagement suite bringing together a powerful set of applications entirely under one roof.
The firm was among the fourth batch of startups incubated by Times Internet-led TLabs', a startup accelerator and early stage seed fund.
“Seeing the team's passion and execution we have taken the decision to bring them on board. We see a lot of synergies with the businesses within TIL and GMAS,†said Abhishek Gupta, head of TLabs.
TIL’s acquisition is expected to help GMAS get more customers who can also use the platform to advertise to their target customers locally, the company said.
BCCL runs news dailies The Times of India and The Economic Times besides other media properties. TIL recently invested $15 million (Rs 100 crore) to acquire a majority stake in Taskbucks, a mobile-only marketplace that rewards users for completing micro tasks.
In October, TIL became the newest investor in Jaipur-based Girnar Software Pvt Ltd, which runs auto portals CarDekho.com and Gaadi.com besides product discovery engine Pricedekho.com. The investment was part of a transaction in which TIL sold auto portal Zigwheels to Girnar for an undisclosed amount.
