Shadowfax’s speedy delivery strategy; Awfis’ road to public debut

Hello,

Is it finally the endgame for BYJU’S?

A lawsuit filed in a US federal court alleges the once edtech behemoth unlawfully moved funds intended for creditor payments from its US units to Whitehat Education Technology. The lenders say they spent over a year trying to trace the disputed $533 million, however, Byju Raveendran argued in a filing that the fund was used for a “legitimate commercial purpose.”

The company has become emblematic of the state of India’s edtech sector today, which saw a 30% YoY funding decline in the first eight months of 2024, according to Tracxn. 

However, as upGrad founder Ronnie Screwvala noted at TechSparks Bengaluru this year, the sector doesn’t have to bear BYJU’S burden: “If some unicorns could not make it to the finishing line, that doesn't mean that the entire industry is tainted.”

And PhysicsWallah is one such success story. The unicorn, which raised a massive $210 million last month, is now reportedly in talks with investment bankers as it prepares for an IPO.

Well, success and failure go hand in hand. Nine out of 10 startups fail, but are founders’ experiences overlooked when they go back to the regular corporate workforce? 

Some Redditors believe having ‘founder’ in your CV sets off red flags for any prospective employer as entrepreneurs are poor at taking direction and often have difficulty with authority.

Lastly, Ratan Tata has been a guiding light for entrepreneurs for decades and his journey offers many lessons on patience in business and embracing social responsibility.

Here’s a throwback to when Tata had a job offer from IBM and how he drafted his first resume.

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• Shadowfax’s speedy delivery strategy
• Awfis’ road to public debut
• Making sports accessible to all

Here’s your trivia for today: What is the largest French-speaking city in the world?

Logistics

Shadowfax’s speedy delivery strategy

The unit economics of delivering a shampoo in 15 minutes may not work out for D2C brands and vertical marketplaces, but they are still keen to improve delivery speed to match customer expectations in the age of quick commerce and instant gratification. 

Third-party logistics player Shadowfax is proposing a strategy for the same: a network of dark stores to help D2C brands and sellers of lifestyle products reach their customers faster and in an “economical” way. 

Rapid commerce:

• Shadowfax offers two options: brands can operate their own dark stores and use the logistics company for last-mile delivery, or they can let Shadowfax manage their inventory and deliver within 2-4 hours from the time the order is placed. 
• The company—which began piloting this model around four months ago—currently operates 10 such stores in Mumbai, Delhi, and Bengaluru. 
• Shadowfax is not the only logistics player dabbling in dark stores for rapid commerce; its listed peer Delhivery is also considering tapping it. The CEO of Delhivery, during the company’s townhall, said Delhivery would launch a network of dark stores for some clients and assess how they scale up. 

Funding Alert

Startup: Samunnati

Amount: Rs 1,123 Cr

Round: Debt

Startup: SPRY Therapeutics

Amount: $15M

Round: Undisclosed

Startup: UrjaMobility 

Amount: Rs 100 Cr

Round: Pre-Series A

TechSparks

Awfis’ road to public debut

Awfis Space Solutions, a leading co-working and flexible office space provider, recently made waves with its successful initial public offering–the first in its sector to go public in India. In a conversation at TechSparks Bengaluru, Chairman and MD Amit Ramani discussed the motivations behind its public debut.

First mover advantage:

• Reflecting on the decision to take Awfis public, Ramani said, “From our standpoint, we were always one of the first. We perfected the managed aggregation model, a profit-share system, which had never been done in co-working before—it was only seen in hospitality. We did it at scale.”
• Another thing that encouraged Ramani to go public was the continued investor confidence in his company despite global pessimism after SoftBank-backed co-working giant WeWork shut shop, a year before Awfis' IPO.
• Ramani highlighted Awfis’s early focus on India's Tier II cities as part of its long-term growth strategy, adding that he believes “India’s $5-10 trillion economy is going to be written in these cities”.

Woman Entrepreneur

Making sports accessible to all

From a young age, Sonam Taneja dabbled in sports like badminton, pickleball, padel, football, and volleyball. Her passion for sports eventually led her to become an entrepreneur. 

Today, she is the Co-founder and Head of Business Development at Hudle, a sports tech platform that connects players with sports venues and helps in optimising facility management.

Building sports communities:

• Hudle started as a sports events platform in 2016, founded by Taneja’s husband. Later, in 2018, it pivoted and launched its application and community platform.
• Sports infrastructure is crucial for women players, believes Taneja, adding that the real problem is not just about getting people to play—it is about having enough good facilities.
• With the Hudle platform, all bookings are streamlined online, from eliminating double bookings, simplifying payment processing, to automating memberships, and handling invoicing.

News & updates

• Antitrust: For the first time since AT&T was dismantled into Baby Bells four decades ago, the US government is weighing the breakup of one of the world’s largest monopolies: Google. The US Department of Justice in a court filing said it may recommend dismantling Google’s core businesses, separating Google’s search business from Android, Chrome, and Google Play Store.
• Cost of war: The global economy could face losses of $14.5 trillion over a five-year period from a hypothetical geopolitical conflict which hits supply chains and the insurance market, Lloyd's of London said. The economic impact would result from severe damage to infrastructure in the conflict region and the potential for compromised shipping lanes.
• Twitter fight: Brazil’s Supreme Court has lifted the ban on X following its compliance with court orders. The decision marks the end of a month-long suspension after a standoff between X’s billionaire owner, Elon Musk, and Brazilian authorities over allegations of spreading disinformation.

What is the largest French-speaking city in the world?

Answer: Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

We would love to hear from you! To let us know what you liked and disliked about our newsletter, please mail [email protected]. 

If you don’t already get this newsletter in your inbox, sign up here. For past editions of the YourStory Buzz, you can check our Daily Capsule page here.