Ahmedabad start-up Laundrynow.in to raise Rs 6.5 cr for expansion

Firm offers both online and offline laundry services; plans to expand beyond Ahmedabad to other cities in Gujarat

Having bagged seed funding of Rs 1 crore from angel investors, Ahmedabad-based start-up laundrynow.in is now looking to expand in other states. To fund its future expansion of operations, the company is now looking at raising further $1million or Rs 6.5 crore.

The start-up has set up online and offline laundry services aggregating business wherein it helps customers in saving time and money by booking their laundry services at a click of a button or through phone calls.

While Laundrynow.in began its operations from Ahmedabad, it is now eyeing an entry into major cities in Gujarat including Rajkot, Jamnagar, Vadodara, Surat, before expanding to other states. Envisaged as an early starter in Gujarat market, laundrynow.in is already getting early traction in an online laundry space.

"Information Technology is the most powerful weapon a consumer can have, and as per a survey almost 80 per cent of the time consumers end up paying extra in lack of expert laundry services. Currently the laundry market is largely dominated by offline players, who cater to the premium categories only. However, the price points set by these companies are not the best fit for a massive consumer base. Laundrynow.in is trying to fill the gap by offering comprehensive solutions at an affordable price, by making it a sustainable business model," said Shailendra Singh Rao, Founder, Laundrynow.in.

At Laundrynow.in customers can simply place an order for Laundry, Ironing, and a comprehensive range of services through the Website or through the toll free no. 180012 11 312.

"We are also planning to have offline drop points with our partners for the drop of clothes, bed sheets, curtains, sofa covers etc. and very soon we will be launching our app too. On booking the services online, a Laundrynow.in agent carrying eco friendly packing bags arrives at the customer's door to pick up the order, within an hour. The expert cleaners and master pressers at Laundrynow.in ensure that customer's clothes come back to life, looking fresh and vibrant and the order is then delivered back to the customers before the committed time. Laundrynow.in's lead-time for the processes ranges between 12 hours to 48 hours, depending nature of the kind of job given," Rao added.

According to the startup, the Indian laundry industry is estimated at Rs 2.20 lakh crore, of which the unorganised market (which includes dhobis, maid servants, and mom-and-pop stores) is valued at Rs 5,000 crore. Being fragmented with 7,67,000 establishments, 98 per cent of the sector comprises micro-sized laundries with fewer than 10 workers. The organised segment, on the other had, comprises a mere 2-3 per cent of the entire laundry market in India.