Supply chain solutions firm Leap India eyes Rs 5-6 bn in Series-C funding

A senior management official of the company said that it will hit a revenue of around Rs 2 bn this financial year

Mumbai-based supply chain solutions firm Leap India is planning to raise around Rs 5-6 billion from its existing investors, including Mayfield, IndiaNivesh Growth Fund, and others.   

The fundraising will support organic and inorganic growth, said a senior management official. He added that the company will hit a revenue of around Rs 2 billion this financial year. 

"We are in the process of raising the third round of fundraising to the tune of around Rs 5-6 billion, including equity and debt, to support our growth. We are also ready to set up our operations outside the country once we receive the nod from our investors," said Leap India Business Head Gaurav Singh. 

So far, the company has raised around Rs 2.5 billion. The existing investors include Mayfield, IndiaNivesh, Sixthsense, TCI Ventures, and SSG Capital Management Group. 

The company will keep a 1:2 ratio for equity and debt for the fundraising. Currently, around 48 per cent of the equity is with the investors while the rest is with the promoters. The existing investors and the promoters are expected to dilute their stake in the fundraising to bring in new investors. However, the company did not divulge the new investors entering the board with the new fundraising.   

While the company currently has its business of renting pellets and foldable large containers, it is expanding to forklifts, which are used widely in the automobile logistics industry. 

Further, Leap India is looking at acquisitions, both in India and overseas, as part of its expansion. The company plans to establish its presence in certain Asian and European countries. However, the proceeds from the current fundraising, which is expected to be over shortly, will be mainly for organic growth, which is expected to continue at around 250 per cent for the next four to five years, Singh said.  

"The market for the segment we are in has 10,000 times more opportunity left," he maintained, justifying the company's expectations of consistently higher growth rate for the next few years.   

The company posted a rental revenue of Rs 770 million last financial year and is expected to clock in around Rs 2 billion during the current financial year. Previous reports say that the company's client list includes Daimler, Mahindra, Lucas-TVS Ltd, Tata Cummins, Visteon, Honda, Toyota, Tata, Fiat, LG, Cargill, VulcanXpress, Pepperfry, Mondelez International, Blue Dart, Abbott, Carlsberg, Pernod Ricard, and United Breweries.  

Founded in July 2013, Leap India is a supply chain solutions company that is into the business of returnable packaging and pooling of equipment such as wooden pallets -- the flat transport structure supporting goods while they are moved -- plastic containers, wooden boxes, and metal wire mesh. It caters to all sectors that use this equipment to store or transfer products from one location to another. It provides logistics support materials to automobile, fast moving consumer goods, white goods, e-commerce sectors, among others. 

In India, one of the few competitors of the company in the segments it is present in is CHEP, an international company dealing with pallets and container pooling services.