Mumbai-based Niffler, a startup which lets you discover the best deals around you in local brick and mortar stores, has raised a $1 Million seed round led by SAIF partners.
Niffler, which currently operates via a mobile-only model, offers an Android app which lets you discover the best deals around you. The app claims to have over 3,000 active offers listed across 15,000+ stores. The team has also partnered with notable brands like McDonald’s, Ammi’s Biryani, Birdys, Cafe Moshes and Four Fountains De-Stress Spa to provide exclusive offers for Niffler users.
The app currently operates in Mumbai, NCR, Bangalore, Hyderabad & Pune, and aims to expand further post this funding round. At present, there are 300 outlets in Mumbai that offer Niffler-exclusive discounts and the number is claimed to be rising exponentially.
Viraj Shah who’s a co-founder at Niffler, says
We have experienced huge traction since our inception in 2014 with over 30,000 users and presence in the top 5 cities of the country i.e. Mumbai, Pune, NCR, Bangalore and Hyderabad. The seed funding from SAIF Partners not only bolsters our business confidence but will also enable us to drive more innovation through technology-based investments
The app is location-aware, wherein it notifies users of new offers as soon as they go live. There’s also a bit of an AI within app’s interface. It learns from a user’s habits and serves up curated deals based on items that a user likes. When users are near a great deal or have just walked into a mall, the best deals available for them magically pop up on their phones.
And various brands have already seen the growth potential which Niffler offers to them. Over 600 brands – including perennial favourites like Zara, Forever 21, and Shoppers Stop – have had their ‘End of Season Sales’ featured on Niffler. The app has had over 10K install already on the Google Play Store, with an impressive review rating of 4.8 given by 645 reviewers.
The other interesting aspect about the deal, is the size of seed round raised. The $1 Million raised by Niffler, will count amongst one of the highest ever scooped up by an Indian start-up. A few days ago, a similar, high-profile, $1.2 Million round was raised by Momoe, a startup providing tailor-made mobile payment options for Indian consumers.
Niffler brings along with it the second big-ticket investment, which is indirectly aimed towards the benefit of derailing brick and mortar stores. While e-commerce continues to surge in popularity among Indian consumers, local shop owners and brick-mortar stores of even the biggest of brands, have continued to suffer huge losses, due to ever-declining sales.
Another start-up, Grofers, which raised a huge $10 Million round last week, is also aimed at helping brick-mortar stores come back to life, by helping them deliver their goods to consumer in less than 2 hours of their order placement.
