Udaan-Building an Alternative Distribution Network for Small & Medium Businesses
| Case Code: OPER149 Case Length: 10 Pages Period: 2016-2021 Pub Date: 2021 Teaching Note: Available |
Price: Rs.250 Organization : Udaan Industry :Transport & Logistics Countries : India Themes: Digital Marketplace,Logistics & Supply Chain,Disruption,Unicorns |
Abstract Case Intro 1 Case Intro 2 Excerpts
Excerpts
Udaan's Business Model
Udaan (the Hindi word for ‘taking flight’) was co-founded by three former Flipkart employees – Sujeet Kumar (Sujeet), Amod Malviya (Amod), and Vaibhav – to solve the teething problems faced by small and medium businesses across India. The three co-founders, having understood the nitty-gritty of India’s retail industry and the teething problems faced by small-time businessmen and women, decided to plug the unaddressed gaps with the help of digital technologies. The company did not aim to alter the foundations of the Indian B2B business landscape but sought to streamline the existing business system using digital technologies. The founders adopted a ‘first-principles approach’ to solve the problems and created a highly relevant product for the Indian B2B market..
B2B Platform Features
Having in-depth knowledge about the prevailing pain-points and opportunities in the Indian retail B2B sector, Amod, Sujeet, and Vaibhav established Udaan with the singular aim of providing a level-playing field to all participants in the retail chain where no single player would get short-changed or exploited. The company’s full stack B2B mobile platform comprised several features, services, and tools that were designed to plug the gaps in the B2B market mentioned earlier and, consequently, streamline the business transactions of retailers, wholesalers, manufacturers, and importers. (Refer to Exhibit II for the list problems in the Indian unorganized B2B market and the relevant solutions provided by Udaan)..
Road Ahead
In 2020, nearly 100,000 businesses trading in lifestyle products such as clothing, footwear, and accessories signed up with Udaan due to a sudden surge in demand for home wear products such as T-shirts, shirts, socks, blouses, and women’s casual wear. As work-from-home (WFH) became a norm during the COVID-19 pandemic, and retailers and wholesalers adopted digital technologies and home delivery services to maintain social distancing, business volumes, especially of comfort wear and home wear, rose rapidly on Udaan’s platform. While small and medium businesses accounted for the largest percentage of new subscribers, even big manufacturers and brands, including Hummel, Relaxo, Jockey, Arvind, Shoppers Stop, and Lifestyle partnered with Udaan to leverage its scale..
Exhibits
Exhibit I: Udaan’s Internal & External Funding Details
Exhibit II: Issues in the Unorganized Retail Market and Relevant Solutions Provided by Udaan: A Snapshot
Exhibit III: A Typical Transaction Journey on the Udaan App
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