Shiprocket raises $11M funding from McKinsey

Logistics platform Shiprocket has secured $11 million in additional funding during an extended Series E round. The investment from McKinsey was facilitated through its investment entity AFOS.

Delhi-based Shiprocket's board has authorised the issuance of 20,913 series E2 preference shares at a price of Rs 43,394 each, resulting in the capital infusion of Rs 90.7 crore ($11 million), regulatory documents filed with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs show.

As a result of this investment, McKinsey, via its investment arm AFOS, will possess a 0.91% ownership stake in Shiprocket.

The company achieved unicorn status in August 2022, valued at $1.3 billion after raising $32.6 million from investors.

In the fiscal year 2021-22, Shiprocket reported revenue of Rs 611.13 crore, a 70.7% increase from the previous year. However, it reported losses of Rs 93.15 crore for FY22, compared to profits of Rs 12.47 crore for FY21. Expenses rose by 107% to Rs 727.8 crore.

The most substantial contributors to these rising expenses were the cost of materials consumed, which increased by nearly 1.8 times year-on-year to Rs 518.9 crore, and employee benefits expenses, which grew by 2.8 times to Rs 122.66 crore.

Other expenses, including rent and building repairs, also expanded significantly, rising by 4.5 times to Rs 81.8 crore. This was partly due to Shiprocket's expansion efforts as it increased its network of fulfillment centers during the year.

Founded in 2017 by Saahil Goel, Gautam Kapoor, and Vishesh Khurana, Shiprocket provided logistics fulfillment services to nearly 2.5 lakh merchants, catering to both direct-to-consumer brands and longtail sellers.

In the past year, the company strengthened and consolidated its business through five strategic acquisitions, including ROCKETBOX (cargo shipping business), Glaucus (supply chain management platform), Wigzo (marketing automation platform), Pickrr (logistics aggregator), and Omuni (Arvind Internet’s retail enablement business).