On Wednesday, Meesho, the ecommerce unicorn, launched its tech platform Valmo, aimed at facilitating affordable deliveries and bridging supply chain gaps nationwide. Valmo empowers micro-entrepreneurs to fulfill orders efficiently.
The platform unites logistics platforms, technology partners, and small entrepreneurs managing sorting centers to streamline the delivery process.
Currently, the ecommerce player utilizes Valmo to fulfill orders made on its marketplace.
Meesho stated that Valmo operates through disaggregated network nodes spread across the country, encompassing first-mile, last-mile, and sorting centers. This decentralized structure enables delivery partners to be situated in close proximity to users, resulting in reduced delivery times.
“Valmo is about getting organised smaller players to play a part in the larger e-commerce system. The smaller players amount to only about 20-22% of the ecommerce deliveries today. With Valmo as a network, we believe we can take that share to 45% in the next one year,” Meesho’s CXO – fulfilment and initiatives Saurabh Pandey said.
The startup disclosed that it has been diligently developing the platform over the past 18-24 months before launching it last year.
Continue Exploring: Meesho diversifies strategy, set to launch financial services and expand grocery delivery for enhanced profitability
Meesho said it has teamed up with companies such as ElasticRun, FarEye, LoadShare, and Shipsy to cultivate the technological capabilities necessary for Valmo.
Pandey elaborated on the network’s model, stating that opting for disaggregated logistics supply chain over large node models is a better strategy. This approach minimizes platform investment and fosters a more dependable model by facilitating stronger connections between sellers and the various logistic partners involved at different stages.
Meesho stated that Valmo currently assists in handling more than 900,000 daily orders. The deliveries managed by Valmo span approximately 6,000 pin codes across over 20 Indian states.
The startup stated that it had onboarded 3,000 micro-entrepreneurs on the platform. It claimed to generate 35,000 indirect jobs through engagement with these local partners as of now.
Continue Exploring: Meesho fastest growing e-commerce player; GMV tops $5 Billion: Alliance Bernstein Report
It also mentioned that it is currently experimenting with Valmo for grocery deliveries.
Pandey mentioned that Valmo has assisted Meesho in reducing its logistics costs by 5%. However, as of now, the unicorn does not have any plans to shift the fulfillment of all orders onto the network.
Meesho stated that it will maintain its collaboration with third-party logistics providers such as Delhivery, Shadowfax, Xpressbees, Ecom Express, and others.
As ecommerce penetration grows in the country, the Indian logistics market is experiencing rapid expansion. Meesho vies for market share alongside Flipkart and Amazon in the ecommerce sector. Both these giants possess their own logistics arms. Flipkart’s logistics arm, eKart, extends services to small, medium, and large businesses (SMBs), as well as other brands across India.
Last year, Amazon injected an extra INR 400 Cr into its Indian logistics subsidiary, Amazon Transportation Services. This investment was aimed at facilitating the delivery of non-Amazon orders through a new vertical known as Amazon Shipping.
Meesho saw a 48% year-on-year decrease in its net loss to INR 1,675 Cr in FY23, while its operating revenue surged by 77% to INR 5,735 Cr.
Continue Exploring: Meesho’s FY23 revenue soars to INR 5,735 Crore, marking a 77% growth as losses narrow by 48%