Five Startups that made waves in 2022

The start-up scene in India is witnessing a boom and the country already has around 84,000 new ventures recognised by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) and newer ones are coming up each day.

The year 2022 was an especially busy one for the start-up movement. Nearly two dozen of the new ventures entered the unicorn club. 

Here is a close look at five of these incredible ventures that made waves in 2022:

CRED

CRED, an Indian fintech company, began its journey in 2018 and entered the unicorn club this year. The fintech startup primarily focusses on affluent customers and is one of the most talked about startups over the years. Also because of an aggressive publicity campaign, CRED is now a quite well known name. 

Founded by Kunal Shah, this Bangalore-based startup offers a variety of service to customers such as credit and financial products. The startup believes in encouraging people to improve their financial behavior.

According to TechCrunch, CRED is the youngest Indian startup valued at around $2.2 billion. The startup has a whopping over 6 million customers, according to estimates.

As per an industry report, CRED which started as a startup company is all set to acquire other ventures. CRED is also planning to launch a facility where CRED coins can be used by over a thousand merchants. The startup is also planning to own an eCommerce store. It is clearly visible that the startup is planning much more than just providing reward coins to its customers.

LEAD

Lead is another startup that became a unicorn in 2022. It is one of the first few edtech startups to make it to the unicorn list of India. In January 2022, the company raised $100 million in a fifth round of funding which was led by WestBridge Capital and GSV Ventures, according to reports. With this, the company obtained a positioning of $1.1 billion.

The edtech startup raised a total value of $166 million in 5 rounds of funding. This is not it, LEAD School also registered notable growth in 2021. At present, it claims to have presence in over 5,000 schools, heeling than 2 million students across India. 

Livspace

The Bengluru based startup, Livspace, the sixth unicorn of the year. This company specialises in interiors and is known for efficiently delivering smooth and elegant products. It raised $180 million in the series F round  from American investment giant KKR & Co, Swedish retail giant Ikea, Jungle Ventures, Venturi Partners and Peugeot Investments. The startup raised a total of $450 million across 10 rounds of funding. The home interior and decoration company has become a trendsetter in a short span of time.

Purplle 

Started back in 2012, Purplle also became a unicorn this year. The online marketplace reached the billion-dollar club in June by getting its series E investment. The startup brand has garnered $33 million in funding from investors like Paramak Ventures, Premji Invest, Blume Ventures, and Kedaara. After this investment round, Purplle’s valuation lifted to $1.1 billion. The unicorn aims to utilize cash infusion to develop its private brands, according to reports.

Meesho

Founded in 2015 by IIT-Delhi graduates, Meesho took a lead in the ecommerce space this year. The year 2022 has been a notable one for Meesho as it crossed 6 lakh seller registrations recording a 7 fold increase since 2021. The company is valued at $2.1 billion after raising $300 million in funding. 

The platform has raised $490 million so far and its investors include Facebook. It is connected to over 13 million entrepreneurs across Indian cities dealing in grocery, home and kitchen appliances, apparel and more. As Indian social commerce is expected to grow at the rate of 55%-60%, Meesho has immense potential to take retail sales to new heights in the future. Meesho claims to have delivered from over 10,0000 registered suppliers, generating over 500 crores or $68 million in revenue for homepreneurs.

Read More … Startup Growth Kit: Startup India, Incubator, Seed Funds, Venture Capital, Unicorn Guide