Online classifieds are gaining immense popularity in India. These platforms have become a channel for companies, individual businesses, startups, as well as home users to buy and sell products with ease.
With numerous features and listings available for buyers and sellers, these platforms enable users to post ads and promote their business, services, and products relevant to others. However, buyers and sellers across the country often find it difficult to connect with each other due to various factors such as large number of competitors and low investments.
After witnessing these difficulties of buyers and sellers in their hometown, Meerut, siblings Gunjeet Singh Bawa (21) and Manmeet Singh Bawa (20) founded SellQuikr in 2018 with an aim to connect all the buyers and sellers directly and independently across India.
Co-founders and brothers Manmeet Singh Bawa (L) and Gunjeet Singh Bawa
The Meerut-based startup provides a common platform for buyers and sellers, where sellers can sell their products independently while buyers can find required products from different sellers.
“We have seen that unless sellers do not have good investment in their business, they do not get good profits. Due to low investments, we have seen many people feel disheartened. This sowed the seeds for SellQuikr. We concluded that all a seller needs is a buyer for his/her products,” says Gunjeet.
The brothers launched the platform while still pursuing their bachelor’s degree in Computer Science. The website currently has over 70 categories, including gadgets, real estate, motorbikes, cars, and clothing.
Why SellQuikr?
While there are many platforms that list products and services such as OLX, eBay, and Quikr, Gunjeet says SellQuikr’s unique selling point is that it offers free classified ads to its users. Sellers are allowed to upload and post classified ads of their products on the platform for free.
“There are many buying and selling websites in India. However, not every website allows the seller to post free classified ads on their website. Apart from this, we provide all-round support to our users. In SellQuikr, users can also sell old products,” says Gunjeet.
How it works?
To purchase a product, a buyer just needs to go to the SellQuikr website or mobile application and search for the required product from the various sellers listed on the platform. Once they choose the product, they can get the contact information of the seller from the platform and get in touch with the seller directly. If the sellers think they have a suitable buyer, they can proceed with the deal.
The platform works on a subscription plan, which was launched in May 2020. This means that more the sellers buy its paid membership plans, the higher revenue the startup earns. The subscription plan starts from Rs 149 and goes up to Rs 1,999. These plans allow sellers to increase the reach of their products and allow them to sell more than one product at a time.
Overcoming the challenges
With just a two-member team, the biggest challenge the startup faced was to find a way to tell the buyers and sellers across India about SellQuikr, and how it will be useful to them.
“Our main target audience are small-scale businesses and entrepreneurs. It took us some time to find our first set of customers. We promoted SellQuikr among our networks and on different social media platforms. To further extend our reach, we individually went to entrepreneurs and introduced them to SellQuikr. We explained how the startup can help them to increase their reach and sell the products,” says Gunjeet.
The co-founders say, the COVID-19 pandemic became a blessing in disguise for the team. In April 2020, many sellers across India were facing huge losses as they had to shut shops, offices, and supermarkets for weeks. To avoid incurring losses, many sellers started using SellQuikr to reach buyers for their products.
Gunjeet adds, “Not only sellers, but even buyers found their required product on SellQuikr. We are proud that we can help sellers and buyers in these difficult times.”
The business
A report by India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) suggests the Indian ecommerce market is expected to grow from $38.5 billion as of 2017 to $200 billion by 2026.
Since May 2020, SellQuikr claims to have earned a revenue of more than Rs 1 lakh. With more than one lakh active users across over 1,000 cities in India, the startup claims to have witnessed over 35 percent growth in the number of users.
The startup, which has been sustainable with the scholarships the brothers earned in their college, is now looking for investors. It is also planning to operate in more cities in the coming months.
(Edited by Megha Reddy)
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Link : https://yourstory.com/2020/07/startup-bharat-meerut-sellquikr-ecommerce-olx-ebay
Author :- Apurva P ( )
July 31, 2020 at 05:20AM
YourStory