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Context is everything.
Detailed stories on technology startups, business and economic current affairs.
Detailed stories on technology startups, business and economic current affairs.
The full-stack platform for used cars has done many things right—from buying vehicles on the spot to offering finance for purchases. Will it survive the bumps on the road ahead?
Editor's note: A friend spent the better part of a year trying to sell his three-year-old Maruti Swift Dzire on online classifieds platform Olx and through an array of small used car dealers. Varying prices were quoted, all way below his expectations. Besides, the prices had no relation to the condition of the vehicle, and there was almost no system in place to check the car to determine its actual value. As time began to run out, he had no option but to give the car to a relative before flying out of the country. The tale is fairly commonplace. Selling or buying a used car in India remains a tough task, fraught with risk. Most used car dealers are small outlets and face issues of trust, the absence of standardized checks to determine the value of a vehicle and the lack of finance options. Until recently, there was also the issue of imposition of similar goods and services tax slabs on both used and new car purchases. But the biggest pain point of all was that a seller had to wait …
Four top-level exits come at a time when the IPO-bound used-car platform is grappling with serious financial challenges.
We look at Spinny, a unicorn, to demonstrate how the used-car business is a graveyard of ideas pretending to be internet-first or internet businesses only to realize years later that the soul of the business lies in brick and mortar.
The region’s growing demand for carbonated beverages and the presence of a large Indian diaspora present an opportunity for the Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate to up its FMCG game through the iconic brand.
