What's next for India's MSMEs

In the last few days, industry stakeholders delved deeper to understand the sector's pulse and devise the way forward for it.

Sunday June 26, 2022 , 3 min Read

Hello Reader,

While Zomato's $636-million deal to acquire Blink Commerce (which operates Blinkit) has generated excitement in India's quick-commerce industry, some smaller players are feeling the heat.

Ola has decided to shut its quick commerce business, Ola Dash. The announcement comes just months after the company had announced expansion plans. The shared mobility major has decided to prioritise Ola Electric, and will also be reorienting Ola Cars, its used-cars retailing division.

But electric vehicles aren't easy to tame.

After a video of a Tata Nexon EV catching fire went viral recently, Ola CEO Bhavish Aggarwal tweeted that any car could catch fire, but EVs were much safer than internal combustion engines.

Deep dive into the MSME sector

The fourth edition of the week-long India MSME Summit 2022 has seen some insightful conversations from small business entrepreneurs and industry stakeholders.

During a fireside chat, Dinesh Agarwal, Founder and CEO of IndiaMart, discussed how Indian MSMEs can overcome their existing challenges and more after COVID-19.

SMBStory also spoke to industry stakeholders to find solutions to the working capital problem MSMEs face, and the way forward.

The best is kept for the last, as YourStory gears up to host the Grand Finale on June 27, which will host speakers from different industries, policymakers and influential leaders, to discuss what’s next for the sector.

Why attend the Grand Finale?

To gain insights into the sector and engage in various discussions.
To learn about innovations that will shape the MSME sector.
To connect with experts, investors, and industry professionals.

Watch the event live on YourStory TV, Facebook, and LinkedIn. To receive the premiere link, register here.

Blockchain lessons

While blockchain and Web3 technologies are finding new use cases by the day, for laymen, they can be a little complex to understand.

Suhas Motwani, Aditya Mohanty, Parth Batra, and Abhay Jani identified the problem and started The Product Folks—among India’s largest volunteer-driven communities of product enthusiasts.

The startup helps people learn, earn, and build in Web3. The courses are free to view for regular users, and are sponsored by the likes of Polygon, Alpha Wave, and ecosystem partners including EPNS, Pillow, Biconomy, Coinshift, and Metamask.

The USP:

The startup offers a single platform for users to learn, earn, and build in Web3.
It offers early members NFTs commemorating their belief in the community.
TPH is working on a bounty and jobs platform, as well as a resource hub.

“We want everyone to have equal access to knowledge, opportunities, and communities to become a part of the Web 3 ecosystem," Suhas says.

Drink up

The lockdowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic devastated the F&B industry, forcing several businesses to shut shop. One among them was Mumbai-based Cravova Foods, which had only started operations a few months before the pandemic.

However, founders Farhan Gigani, Thosif Gigani, and Satish Negi didn't give up and restarted operations in August 2020.

CRAVOVA offers ready-to-drink products including cold coffee and mocktails. “We are taking away home preparation hassle for consumers,” says Satish.

Key takeaways:

The startup leverages technology in its production unit to manage its warehouses as well as monitor the sales force.
CRAVOVA sold around 3.6 million units of beverages in 2021, recording a GMV (Gross Merchandise Value) of around Rs 16 crore.
It is available across 25 Indian cities