“A door is much smaller compared to the house, A lock is much smaller compared to the door, A key is the smallest of all, but a key can open entire house!!! Thus, a small, thoughtful solution can solve major problems”
– By APJ Abdul Kalam |
COVID-19 Crises & Opportunity
The world for the last 6 months & the Indian Startup Ecosystem for the past 3 months are trying their best to brace themselves from these challenging times, due to the COVID-19 outbreak. As rightly mentioned by many in various forums, it is like creating a new normal in the many walks of life in this human world. COVID-19 has impacted few sectors and it is going to last for a longer time e.g., co-working spaces, travel, and tourism, event management, etc., and few others have witnessed a very positive movement e.g., Health-tech, OTT Platforms, Cybersecurity providers, etc. Online education has become an important topic in the current world giving a huge leaf of life for the Edtech Sector. We believe the following industries are least impacted i.e. IT Industry (Positive for Deep Tech & B2B companies), Essential Goods Sector (E-commerce market place & Logistic Industry is seeing a positive impact), Telecom Market (Internet usage has witnessed a big leap), Agriculture Industry (Agri Tech companies has a lot more to do now) & finally, Healthcare, Lifesciences and Pharma Sector (These evergreen sectors has observed more importance in this situation).
This crisis has also given an opportunity to many startups, which are not being able to work on the below directions with full force i.e. Increase Digitization, Nurture Partnerships & Pivoting business model. Considering the current Funding situation (As many investors are still wanting to see the real impact), We urge startups that survive this period with their own money or investors backing them up along with decent growth will be true winners in long term.
We see the current situation as a huge opportunity for many startups to start the race afresh with a new trajectory and move upward on a positive note.
Recent updates from Portfolio Companies:
IndianMoney.com, India’s largest financial education company, is helping Indians Earn More, Spend Less, Save Enough, Invest Wisely and Borrow Consciously through personalised expert financial advisers. It has helped over 8 million people make the right financial decisions and over 1 million people use IndianMoney’s Financial Freedom App. It has raised 10 Cr in a bridge to Series B round led by SRI Capital and Value Labs
Spareshubs, a platform that sells genuine and high-quality automobile replacement parts for cars in both B2B and B2C models, raised a bridge round before raising Series A lead by Indian Angel Network. The company has seen revenue growth of 5x in the last one year.
Initiative: Spareshub is a nurturing partnership with many other startups in the auto sectors.
Toch, a media-tech platform working on video AI that auto-detects touchpoint inside any video content and interactivity to make video immersive and connect content with e-commerce has raised pre-series A of $500k. The company has seen revenue growth of 10x in the last 8 months.
New initiative: Toch is launching a new app for helping parents to keep their kids engaged. Currently under beta version
PublicVibe is a vernacular hyperlocal community news platform to share news, issues, jobs, and experiences. It has 1MN+ app installations and experienced 3x growth in daily active user base in the last 10 months. Currently, it’s raising an undisclosed bridge fund from existing investors.
Metamorphosis, a community of people fuelled with the Entrepreneurial Spirit that seeks to aware young minds of their immense potential and empowers them with the right skill set to think, to create, and to lead path-breaking innovations that leave an impact has raised an undisclosed amount by way of a bridge round lead by Hyderabad Angels.
Gryphon, a simple-to-use cloud-managed network protection platform powered by machine learning for homes and small businesses, who broke its monthly sales record for the last 6 months post-COVID-19. The company got recognized as one of the Cool Companies of 2020 by the California region recently.
Good initiative from our portfolio company: Fractal works, India lead manufacturers of 3D Printer technology to address the current immediate requirement of India, started producing Face Shields by way of crowdfunding.
Loss of Beloved Member:
Kantamneni Leela Krishna Prasad (Member since March 2016 & lost him in June 2020 after fighting with Cancer)
A Science Graduate joined the Armed Forces and retired from Corps of Army Air Defence after 32 years of service. He held various appointments both in peace and war.
Involved in planning and execution of projects in a New Cantonment; Planning and Training of Students in an Army Training Institute; bringing attitudinal changes in youth in troubled operational areas. Was an active member of FAPPCI. He has been a mentor and guides for many of the start-ups he has invested to date.
Philanthropist and actively associated with children in schools in raising the awareness of climate change, water conservation and harvesting and cleanliness. Actively associated with developing and supporting entrepreneurial activities amongst the youth.
a) Broader Market Views & Sectors which need to be focused in the next one year.
– Speakers Ramana Gupta and Satish Kanteti
b)Covid Disruption and its impact on the startup’s view of the VC community – Speaker Dr. Ramesh Byrapeneni, Endiya Partners,
Venkat Vallabhaneni, Infexor Ventures,
Fellow investors, I hope all of you are taking the necessary precautions to stay safe in this strange and difficult period that the world is going through.
In every crisis, lies an opportunity for those who are willing to innovate. I am pleased to inform you that some of our investee companies have successfully adapted to the changing environment and are doing extremely well. As always, Team HA continues to ensure a steady funnel of market relevant investment opportunities at very attractive valuations.
Fracktal has started using its 3D printing machines instead of selling them and have achieved the budgeted annual revenue in just one month; and they currently have a backlog of 33 months of production. Gryphon sold out its routers budgeted for a quarter in under a month! People have further realized the importance of holidays & Thrillophilia is poised to triple its annual budgeted revenue, soon after the COVID crises diminishes. Metamorphosis has raised capital just in a few days. These are a few examples of organizations transforming their business models to the changing needs of the market and positioning themselves to ascertain future growth opportunities.
Due to the unprecedented crisis and resulting economic uncertainty, many large investors initially adopted a cash preservation strategy. But they are now opening up their purse strings, not wanting to be left behind in this once in a lifetime opportunity.
I have been a member of HA, since 2012 & a board member since 2014. HA has evolved into an efficient, transparent, ethical, and trusted angel investment platform over the years. We have formed formidable associations with members of the start-up eco-system.
It’s been an enriching experience, being at the thick of HAs’ evolution. I foresee HA going from strength to strength in the years to come. Wishing HA, the very best of luck.
G Ram Chaitanya Reddy
Chairman.
Hyderabad Angels
About HA:
Hyderabad Angels (HA) has been investing in potential early-stage companies across the world to create tangible as well as intangible value to society. HA has been built on strong values addressing stakeholders like Startups, Investors, and Partners. We always believe in bringing “Value beyond Capital” to Start-ups from the experience of its members & connections in terms of growth & governance.
Founded in the year 2012, HA investors are leading venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, and business leaders, who, with their financial and business acumen, is committed to providing support to the Indian and global start-up ecosystem. Besides providing capital to businesses that HA partner with, the investors also mentor entrepreneurs and provide them access to various professional and personal networks, thereby, helping businesses in achieving impressive and exponential growth.
HA’s members come from diverse backgrounds who, with their strong operational expertise and professional network contribute towards the company’s enhancement, thereby, creating value for all stakeholders.
Sector and location agnostic, HA invest up to $1m in asset-light, low touch, and scalable businesses with existing customer and revenue traction.
