Ninjacart Startup Model – Tech-Enabled Supply Chain for Fruits & Vegetables

Ninjacart is a food supply platform & the most significant supply chain in India that delivers fresh fruits and vegetables to retailers. The company delivers 1500-1600 tons of fresh vegetables and fruits daily and have more than 1100 warehouses and over 190 collection centers in the country. Their apps help in leveraging infrastructure, connecting farmers to retailers, data science, etc. Let’s get to know about the success story of this unique startup that is making our lives easier.

Ninjacart - Key Points

• Comapny Type - Ninjacart
• Founded - 2015
• Founders - Ashutosh Vikram, KartheeSwaran KK, Sharath Loaganathan, Sachin Jose, Thirukumaran Nagarajan
• Sector - Logistics, Supply Chain
• Headquarters - Bangalore, Karnataka, India
• CEO - Thirukumaran Nagarajan
• Area Served - India
• Website - www.ninjacart.in

Ninjacart - Founders and Team

Ninjacart got founded by Ashutosh Vikram, Thirukumaran Nag, Sharath Loaganathan, Karthee Swaran KK, and Sachin Jose. They have a hardworking and diligent team who are making this business a successful venture. Some of their team members are as follows:

• Thirukumara Nagarajan - Co-founder of Ninjacart and CEO
• Prashanth Vijatakumar - Full Stack Developer
• Thiagarajan S - AVP Product Management
• Abhishek Agarwal - Director of Strategy
• Karthee Swaran KK - Chief Operating Officer (COO)

Ninjacart - Logo, Brand Name, and Tagline

• Logo - The logo of the company is in simple and catchy green color. It indicated the company intends to revolutionize the food ecosystem.
• Brand Name - The brand name of Ninjacart indicates their work.
• Tagline – “The future of fresh produce.” Ninjacart’s catchline is clear about the concept of their business. They keep modifying their catchlines.

Ninjacart - Business Model

Ninjacart’s business model is simple. They eliminate the intermediaries in the goods supply chain by delivering fresh and good quality vegetables and fruits to the foodservice providers and retailers. They handle everything with proper hygiene and believe in transporting the goods on time.

Ninjacart has improved the salary of farmers and fulfilled all the promises during the time of the contract. More than 25% of their vegetables and fruits are obtained directly from the farmlands. They also believe in educating the farmers and making them aware of various programs. It helps them in giving the best products to Ninjacart and, their crops also get saved. They also teach them about the several advantages of selling their procured food directly to the company.

Ninjacart - Revenue Model

The company’s revenue models aim to build a perfect fintech platform and a stable ecosystem for the farmers. They have more than 100 collection centers from where they procure fruits and vegetables. The company helps the farmers to buy the required equipment such as tractors, farming tools, etc., for their lands. Their app helps them in getting the financial benefits and raise the capital for their lands. Ninjacart earns money by selling fresh goods to the retailers at a profitable price.

Ninjacart - Growth and Revenue

Ninjacart’s has seen a growth of more than 400% in the last four years. The company is officially now profitable.

Their estimated revenue for the financial year 2019-2020 is around $600 million. The company’s revenue per employee for the last fiscal year is $2,50,000.

Ninjacart - Funding and Investors

Ninjacart has raised a funding of $203.7 million in 12 rounds to date. Their recement investors are Flipkart and Walmart. They have 19 investors who have funded the company. Some of their investors and funding are as follows:

• $9.5 Million - Venture Round, Syngenta Ventures, 2021
• $30 million - Corporate Round, Flipkart, Walmart, 2020
• $10 million - Series C Round, Flipkart, 2019
• $4.2 Million - Debt Financing Round, Trifecta Capital Advisors, 2019
• $420k - Series C Round, 2019
• $10 million - Series C Round, 2019
• $90 million - Series C Round, Tiger Global Management, 2019
• $33.5 million - Series B Round, Accel, Syngenta Ventures, 2018
• $4.9 million - Series A Round, Accel, NRJN Trust, 2018
• $1.1 Million - Debt Financing Round, Trifecta Capital Advisors, 2018
• $5.7 million - Series A Round, Accel, 2017

Ninjacart - Challenges

Some of the challenges faced by the company are as follows:

• Farmers Trust - Gaining farmer’s trust was a big deal for the company. They are the most significant part of their business and, it is crucial to develop trust factors between the company and farmers. Several farmers in the country hesitate in dealing with the corporates because of a lack of transparency and risk factors.
• Competitors - Ninjacart has a lot of competitors like any other startup. They are performing well on various levels and also making profits.
• Covid - Covid has affected almost every business. Ninjacart also faced the harsh effects of this pandemic. People were dying and losing their family members and, it became difficult for everyone to focus on their professional lives.

Ninjacart - Competitors

Ninjacart has a lot of competitors in the market. Some of them are performing well on their level and growing at a perfect speed. Some of the competitors of Ninjacart are as follows:

• Farming
• Chilibeli
• AgroStar
• FarmLead

Ninjacart - Future Plans

Some of the upcoming plans of the company are as follows:

• They are planning to build a system that got driven by technology and data.
• They want to focus on small business holders.
• They are planning to add more customers to their business.
• Ninjacart wants to focus more on the farmers and help them grow the best quality food.
• They wish to decrease their delivery time to the retailers and food service vendors. It will help them in delivering the goods when it is fresh.
• They will add more employees in the future to expand their business.
• Ninjacart is also planning to diversify its business in some other fields.

Ninjacart – Helping Farmers through Services

Ninjacart is doing its job profoundly. They are benefitting the farmers in every possible way. They are delivering fresh and quality products on time. The company is doing a great job in revolutionizing the agriculture market and the food supply chain. Their efforts are helping the urban people to get fresh and good quality vegetables and fruits.