Green shoots in the startup ecosystem; Short-form video platforms’ growth

There’s trouble in paradise for Dunzo.

Deloitte flagged that Dunzo's ability to continue operating as a going concern depends on the inflow of additional funding and improvements in business operations. The quick commerce and courier services firm posted a loss of Rs 1,801 crore in FY23, with current liabilities exceeding its current assets by Rs 325.8 crore mainly due to “significant high operational costs for building customer base”, according to the auditor.

Meanwhile, gaming firm Nazara Technologies posted Rs 297.24 crore in revenue from operations in the quarter ended September 2023—a jump of 12.7% from Q2 last year. It posted Rs 24.2 crore in PAT—a 53.3% jump from Rs 15.77 crore earned in July-September 2022.

Talking of earnings, full-stack agritech marketplace DeHaat's revenue from operations grew 54.2% to Rs 1,965 crore in FY23 compared to Rs 1,274 crore the previous year. Its losses narrowed by 30% to Rs 1,094 crore.

Also, Zepto secured an additional $31.25 million from Goodwater Capital and Nexus Venture Partners as part of its Series E funding round. This comes just three months after the Mumbai-based firm raised $200 million at a valuation of $1.4 billion.

And lastly, meet Advocate P Balasubramanian Menon who has entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest-serving lawyer, at the age of 97.

The Kerala-based lawyer has had an illustrious career spanning 73 years and 60 days.

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• Green shoots in the startup ecosystem
• Short-form video platforms’ growth
• Journey of Natureland Organics

Here’s your trivia for today: Which country played in the first-ever Test match and against whom?

Startups

Green shoots in the Indian startup ecosystem

Consumer tech companies such as Zomato and Nykaa have often been subject to unfair criticism purely based on their daily stock performance. However, positive Q2 numbers are breaking preconceived notions. 

Spring:

• Despite initial apprehensions around the impact of Blinkit on Zomato, the quick commerce platform is showing signs of growth.
• Zomato’s Gold programme, which scaled to 3.8 million members within just three quarters of its launch, has found product-market fit. 
• Globally, there are concerns about lower consumer spending, rising unemployment, and an increase in inflation. India, however, is a clear outlier. Indians are shopping online, ordering in, eating out, and lending a hand to boost our consumption story. 

<Funding Alert>

Startup: Zepto

Amount: $31.25M

Round: Series E

Startup: Hearing Solution

Amount: Rs 50 Cr

Round: Series A

Startup: WishCare

Amount: Rs 20 Cr

Round: Undisclosed

Internet

Short-form video platforms’ growth

Homegrown short-form video (SFV) platforms have a user base of about 250 million, with approximately 65-70% of them hailing from Tier II cities and semi-urban and rural centres, according to a report by Redseer Strategy Consultants.

Key takeaways:

• User-generated influencers have gained prominence, with 3.5 million influencers categorised as micro, macro, mega, and elite.
• Demographic analysis reveals that nearly 64% of Indian short-form video platform users are aged up to 25, with mature users accounting for less than 3%.
• About 45% of Indian users reside in semi-urban and rural areas, engaging with a wide range of internet platforms, from gaming to ecommerce.

SMB

Journey of Natureland Organics

Ajeet Godara and his brother Aravind’s decision to return to agriculture was met with disapproval from the local farming community. However, despite the hurdles, the brothers were able to build a successful organic farming business. 

Founded in 2002, Natureland organics is now eyeing clocking an annual revenue of around Rs 150 crore, after closing FY23 with Rs 135 crore.

Farm to fork:

• Natureland Organics has over 35,000 acres of dedicated farmlands across India, spread across nine states including Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Karnataka. 
• The company provides farmers with specialised training programmes to enhance their crop management skills and boost yields.
• Apart from selling under its own brand name, Natureland Organics supplies products to other brands like Organic India, Bigbasket’s private label brand BB Royal Organic, and Shark Tank fame Anveshan. 

News & updates

• AI race: Amazon is building a new AI model codenamed "Olympus" as it seeks to catch up with rivals OpenAI and Google. The tech and commerce giant is reportedly developing a large language model for its online store and Alexa smart speakers
• Mounting loss: SoftBank was forced to wire $1.5 billion to Goldman Sachs and other lenders days before WeWork filed for bankruptcy. The payment takes the total SoftBank has committed to WeWork to more than $16 billion, making it one of the worst venture capital investments in history.
• Rare find: A very rare blue diamond, the Bleu Royal, fetched $43.8 million at a Christie's auction in Geneva. The 17.61-carat, pear-shaped diamond was set in a ring. Christie's said only three fancy vivid blue diamonds over 10 carats had appeared for sale in its 250-year auction history.

Which country played in the first-ever Test match and against whom?

Answer: England played against Australia in the first-ever Test match in 1877.

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