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Social commerce platform Meesho is in the middle of fresh fundraising pursuit to raise $40-50 million. The ongoing talks with potential fundraisers have reportedly reached advanced stage. Apoletto Asia, the personal investment vehicle of Russian billionaire Yuri Milner, is said to be one of the potential investors involved in the fundraising talks.
The upcoming round is also likely to witness participation by Meesho’s existing investors including Sequoia India, Y Combinator and Saif Partners. In all likelihood, the round will value the social commerce platform at approximately $250 Mn. The forthcoming funding may also result in exit of some existing investors.
These fundraising talks have come barely four months after Meesho managed to scoop up $11.5 million in a round led by Sequoia India.
Meesho, a three year old startup, is attempting to bring revolution in the nascent social commerce industry. It is an industry where small resellers, who usually operate from their home, try to sell their products through popular social media channels like Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp.
Companies like Meesho try to connect resellers with suppliers and earns by charging small commission (10% -12) on resellers. The company deals in various categories, but lifestyle apparels and accessories are its most popular categories. Most of the resellers on company’s platform hail from tier 2 and tier 3 cities.
Another formidable competitor in the fray is Shop101, which is also attempting to lure small re-sellers and hence poses strong competition to Meesho.
Most analysts claim that social commerce is the future of buying and selling. Their optimism is mostly owing to social media’s phenomenal reach and people’s increasing affinity to buy products from trusted networks through social media channels.
