BeepKart, a full-stack online retailer of used 2-wheelers, has announced that it has raised a $3 million seed round led by Stellaris Venture Partners and Chiratae Ventures.
The round also saw participation from angel investors including tech founders like Varun Alagh (Mamaearth), Sahil Barua (Delhivery), Vivekananda Hallekere (Bounce), Kunal Shah (CRED), Ramakant Sharma (Livspace) and Rajesh Yabaji (Blackbuck).
The raised capital will be used to build a world-class engineering team to deliver on its tech and product first goals.
Founded by Hemir Doshi and Abhishek Saraf, BeepKart is taking a tech-first approach to address the trust deficit in the massive used 2-wheeler market.
BeepKart aims to bridge the wide gap in experience between buying and owning new and used 2-wheelers. Unlike classifieds platforms, vertical-focused BeepKart provides used 2-wheeler buyers the required confidence on price, quality and after-sales service, it said in a press release.
As per Google’s Auto Gear Shift India 2020 report, 90 percent of new 2-wheeler buyers go online from initial research to final purchase. This behavior is seen across price points and in metros and towns.
Hemir Doshi, Co-founder & CEO, BeepKart said, “2-wheelers form over 80 percent of India’s vehicle base, and there are seven times as many used 2-wheelers sold every year as used cars. Buying a scooter or motorcycle is one of the key purchase decisions by the Indian consumer, yet the market suffers from a lack of rules and a great trust deficit. In our view, 2-wheelers are more amenable to online sales than cars, and the decision to buy and sell is made more quickly. We are seeing good early traction for our buyer-focused online brand and offering."
The business is currently Live in Bengaluru, and will expand to three more locations over the next 12 months. BeepKart will engage throughout the buyer’s ownership lifecycle by providing reliable spare parts, services, accessories, loans, and insurance for the used bikes through network partners.
Ritesh Banglani, Partner at Stellaris Venture Partners said, “Used vehicles represent one of the largest retail categories globally with virtually no online penetration in used 2-wheelers in India. Globally, very large companies have been built selling used cars online. I believe the largest vehicle commerce companies in India will sell bikes and scooters, not cars.”
TC Meenakshisundaram, Founder & Managing Director, Chiratae Ventures said, “Over the last 10 years a lot of innovation has happened globally at the cross-section of cars and e-commerce. This decade will see such opportunities in 2-wheeler related e-commerce. For most Indians, 2-wheelers are the entry point into personal mobility. The pandemic has further increased the desire of millions of Indians to own their personal vehicle. At the same time, new 2-wheelers are becoming very expensive and out of reach for many.”
