m.Paani, a Mumbai-based marketing and data analytics startup, has today raised an undisclosed amount of funding in pre-Series A round from Blume Ventures and a set of reputed angel investors.
Angel investors who participated in this fund raising activity, includes TaxiForSure founder Aprameya Radhakrishna, Adil Allana from the Allana Group, Gautam Ivatury, cofounder of Meradoctor & Signal Point Partners, among others.
With the new cash infusion, the company is now looking to use the money to expand the reach of its business to other cities. It will also spend fund for product development and hiring across various departments like technology, product and sales.
It is currently targeting to expand its operations to Delhi-NCR and Bangalore. It is hoping to have nation-wide presence by the end of next two years.
Founded in 2014 by Akanksha Hazari, m.Paani claims to be the first loyalty & data company focused on the mass-market consumer. The company’s mobile-based coalition loyalty program allows members to be rewarded for their shopping at kirana and other local stores and on talktime while rewarded with gifts that are aspirational and help save money.
Users on the platform earn points for their mobile phone usage or expenditure on select FMCG products that can be monetized for products and services – such as safe water, education, energy and healthcare – which will improve their lives.
The company intends to create competitive impact-focused loyalty programs in the telecom sector and in the FMCG sector as well. The aim is to replicate the success of the M-PESA in Kenya. Once successful in India, m.Paani would also initiate a pilot project in Africa as well.
Commenting about the business, Akanksha Hazari said,
Using a mobile-based platform m.Paani gives consumers direct access to local shops, brands, products, and offers with a touch of a button and the opportunity to maximise value from their spend. The future of Indian retail lies in empowering local businesses with the tools and technology that enable them to reach and serve the new generation of Indian consumers who are online, and seek value and service
Sajid Fazalbhoy, Principal, Blume Ventures says,
The company provides a revolutionary product to millions of consumers that would help build affinity to brands and local retailers alike. The brands find the m.Paani platform an immensely valuable tool to help identify, target and understand their customers better via data insights on their consumption patterns. The bundled offering provided by the company has attracted large brand partnerships and a large number of offline merchants on board to help deliver an easy to use, and relevant loyalty program for its mass-market consumer base.
