Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (June 1, 2022)

Slack launches in India

Slack on Wednesday announced that it has officially launched in India. The company says it is on a mission to help Indian companies navigate the transition to a hybrid workplace by establishing a digital headquarters (Digital HQ).

Adopting Slack as a Digital HQ allows Indian companies to connect their teams, tools, customers, and partners in a digital place that’s fast, flexible, and inclusive for a work-from-anywhere world, according to a statement.

Spyne acquires on-demand photography service provider Travographer

Spyne, a deep-tech startup helping businesses and marketplaces create high-quality product images and videos at scale with AI, has acquired Travographer, an on-demand photography service provider company at an undisclosed amount.

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Founded in 2017, Travographer is a leading photography service provider in the real estate sector. It has built a strong community of over 10,000 photographers and has helped them thrive and earn through their passion.

As part of this acquisition, the company has also onboarded 20+ of its employees including the founding team. With this, Spyne expands its presence in the real estate market.

In another development, Spyne has also announced its fresh plans to hire over 100 employees to strengthen its team in the next quarter. The recruitment is focussed on talents in technology, marketing, and the sales domains. The developments will help Sypne to augment its growth plans and further scale its operations. 

Livspace announces C-suite elevations and appointments 

Livspace, an omnichannel home interiors, and renovation platform, today announced top-level C Suite appointments. While Saurabh Jain, Chief Business Officer, has been elevated as Co-Founder and CEO, India operations, Lalit Mittal has been appointed as Chief Business Officer, India. Furthermore, Ankit Shah has been roped in as the new Group Chief Strategy Officer. 

Founded by Anuj Srivastava and Ramakant Sharma in 2015, Livspace recently announced a $180 million fund raise in Series F round to become a unicorn.

Razorpay expands health insurance policy to include LGBTQIA+ and live-in partners

As part of the Pride Month that starts today, 1st June 2022, fintech giant Razorpay announced revamping its employee health insurance policy to include some noteworthy benefits to cover all team members. 

With a commitment to building an employee-centric work culture encouraging diversity and inclusivity, Razorpay’s revised health insurance policy will now include live-in partners, same-gender partners, and those who identify as LGBTQIA+, in addition to providing other benefits such as gender reassignment surgery, infertility treatment among others.

Hero Electric extends partnership with Zypp Electric to power last-mile delivery solutions

Hero Electric has announced a collaboration with Zypp Electric, an EV-as-a-Service platform, to support the growth of the logistic and delivery segment. Under the partnership, Hero Electric will be deploying 1.5 lakh electric scooters for Zypp Electric’s fleet in the next three years.

Hero Electric’s commitment to delivering 360-degree mobility solutions will see it provide service support through its vast network of 750+ touchpoints. This partnership will help Zypp Electric to maintain the growing demand on its EV rental platform and support its mission to provide access to 1 million users for both the last-mile delivery segment and rentals by the end of 2022. 

Commenting on the partnership, Sohinder Gill, CEO, Hero Electric, said,

“The logistics segment is thriving with upward growth momentum where companies are keen on electrifying their fleets for mid and last-mile delivery solutions. We have been in a long-standing association with Zypp Electric by inducting more EVs into its fleet. It will further enable access and penetration across diverse markets for Hero. Our alliance displays the direct advantage of adopting electric mobility in terms of the savings and contributing to a cleaner environment.”

Yogabar acquires health food brand SuperHealthy

Healthy food brand Yogabar on Wednesday announced the acquisition of nutrition-based food company, SuperHealthy. The acquisition is the first step in Yogabar’s new expansion strategy wherein it is looking to acquire a series of budding homegrown food brands.

With this acquisition, Yogabar aims to expand its diverse product portfolio further and increase access to a larger customer base as well as new markets.

Based out of Hyderabad, SuperHealthy specialises in premium nuts, seeds, and trail mixes.