Flipkart Group acquires electronics recommerce firm Yaantra for unknown sum

Incorporated in 2013, Yaantra is a leading brand that repairs and sells refurbished consumer tech products such as smartphones and laptops

E-commerce giant, the Flipkart Group said it has acquired Yaantra, an electronics recommerce company, to strengthen its recommerce business and enhance after-sale offerings for its customers in the smartphones segment. Yaantra, incorporated in 2013 by Jayant Jha, Ankit Saraf and Anmol Gupta, is a leading brand that repairs and sells refurbished consumer tech products such as smartphones and laptops. With this acquisition, Flipkart will provide a comprehensive service ecosystem to its customers that takes care of the entire lifecycle of smartphones. The companies did not reveal the value of the transaction.

As part of this acquisition, the experienced team of Yaantra will help Flipkart build capabilities in this domain and accelerate its recommerce scale-up plans. The business will report to Prakash Sikaria, Senior Vice President and Head of Flipkart’s Growth Charter.

“India is one of the fastest-growing markets for electronic goods, with smartphones being one of the most in-demand. There is a large set of consumers who aspire to own branded devices, but prices are sometimes prohibitive. This is where Yaantra fits in perfectly,” said  Prakash Sikaria, senior vice president - growth and marketing, Flipkart. “Their recommerce value chain and refurbishment capability will allow Flipkart to create a very meaningful recommerce offering. This will not only help us further our commitment to addressing consumer needs, but also reduce the negative impact of overproduction on the environment, considering our strong focus on sustainability.”

The recommerce market in India is growing at a rapid pace.According to reports, the electronics repair market in India can help create over 5 million jobs and revenue of $20 billion per annum. MAIT, the apex body that represents India’s ICT and electronics manufacturing sector , has stated that the electronic device repair and calibration industry is estimated at $100 billion worldwide.

However, the Indian smartphone refurbishment market is largely unorganized and fragmented, which has posed trust and convenience issues for end consumers. With the acquisition of Yaantra, Flipkart will enable greater access to affordable refurbished smartphones, offering value and convenience for the end consumers.

“At Yaantra, we have been able to successfully drive the smartphone recommerce to the next level with our deep understanding of the sector and technology,” said Jayant Jha, co-founder and chief executive officer at Yaantra. “We believe this association will prove to be a game-changer in making the Indian refurbished market a success and creating an even better experience for our consumers.”

This strategic acquisition has been effected through FK Group Entity, F1 Info Solutions & Services Pvt Ltd which is engaged in the business of offering comprehensive lifecycle management (repairs and refurbishment) for various categories. These include mobility, consumer electronics, IT&IT Peripherals, AV and enterprise solutions, in the B2B segment.

Ravi Iyer, senior vice president and head-corporate development, Flipkart, said the firm is striving to find new ways to be more relevant to consumers and address the growing consumer internet ecosystem in India. “This approach includes strategic acquisitions and investments that broaden the scope of our current offerings for customers to become the one-stop destination for their digital needs,” said Iyer. “Through the acquisition of Yaantra, we are enhancing our capabilities in a domain that is critical for the growth of the digital economy in India, as well as developing a comprehensive service ecosystem to support its expansion.”

Flipkart has been an active investor in the ecosystem and has a portfolio of investments in many companies, which include startups such as Ninjacart, Shadowfax and Blackbuck, as well as established corporate entities such as ABFRL and Arvind. Flipkart has also undertaken several marquee M&A transactions such as Myntra, Walmart India, PhonePe, and Cleartrip, as well as cutting-edge technology companies such as Upstream, Liv.ai and Scapic. This strategy is helping it to tap new areas of business, get access to innovation and compete with players such as Amazon, Reliance’s JioMart and Tata-backed BigBasket.

Last year in November, Flipkart forayed into the healthcare sector through the launch of Flipkart Health+. As part of this development, the group has signed definitive agreements to acquire a majority share in Sastasundar Marketplace Limited which owns and operates SastaSundar.com, an online pharmacy and digital healthcare platform, as it focuses on providing consumers access to affordable and convenient healthcare. Last year Flipkart acquired Cleartrip, a leading online travel technology company.

Flipkart Ventures, the investment arm of Flipkart which was first announced in 2019, is a $100 million fund founded on a vision to back early-stage startups in India and thereby help support the ecosystem to build innovative solutions for the next wave of internet users.

Last year in July, Flipkart Ventures and Tiger Global made an investment in Thrasio-style venture G.O.A.T. Brand Labs. G.O.A.T was founded by Rishi Vasudev and Rameswar Misra, who bring with them decades of expertise in this space. Vasudev, a veteran retail executive, previously headed Flipkart's fashion business.

Flipkart is also enhancing consumer experiences through strategic stakes or acquisitions of tech startups. In 2020, Flipkart acquired Scapic, an Augmented Reality company (AR), to enhance its e-commerce shopping experience capabilities. In 2020, Flipkart also strengthened its gaming strategy through the acquisition of intellectual property (IP) from Mech Mocha, a mobile gaming start-up that runs India’s first live-social gaming platform Hello Play.