Milkbasket, a grocery delivery startup will invest worth ₹10 crore to scale up its fresh fruits and vegetable category. With the investment, the startup aims to set up to 10 more fresh scouring centres across the country.
Anant Goel, co-founder and CEO of Milkbasket said that the company will continue to invest significantly to establish a robust processing and distribution network over the next year.
“The company aims to set up to 10 more collection centres in villages to promote right farming practices for better quality yield, maintain the cold chain to mitigate the food wastage and preserve the nutritional value of produce,” the company said in a statement.
Also, direct farm sourcing coupled with direct sales to consumers results in cost effectiveness and no margin leakage to middlemen or other business to business players, the company added.
Currently, fresh fruits and vegetable category contributes over 25 per cent Milkbasket’s sales and the company aims grow this category by at least 1.5 times over the next 12 months, Anant added.
Launched in early 2015, Milkbasket is India’s first and largest daily micro-delivery service.
Built on the unique Indian habit of getting fresh milk delivered at home every morning, Milkbasket is fulfiling the entire grocery needs of a household everyday before 7:00 a.m.
To enable frequent and friction, less buying, the milk-centric startup has innovated flexi ordering and contactless delivery.
Additionally, the company has tied up with multiple farmers producers organisations (FPOs) across the country to source directly from states like Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat.
While, earlier this month, Milkbasket raised an additional $10.5 million in its latest round of funding led by Unilever Ventures, with participation from Mayfield India, Kalaari Capital, and Blume Ventures and few Indian family offices.