JSW One Platforms, the business to business (B2B) e-commerce venture of Indian conglomerate JSW Group, has raised INR 205 Crores ($25 million) from Japanese investor Mitsui & Co., Ltd in a series A funding round.
The Series A funding round values JSW One Platforms at over INR 2,750 Crores ($335 million), JSW One Platforms said in a statement.
According to the statement, JSW One Platforms will utilize the funds to strengthen its market presence and further enhance tech capabilities.
The company plans to expand operations in newer geographies like NCR, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh to cater to the majority of the states in India and will also invest in credit, logistics, and technology stack to improve customer experience.
“I am pleased to welcome Mitsui as an investor in JSW One Platforms. Their decision to invest in our e-commerce business validates our long- term strategic vision to capitalize on technology to take a strong leadership position in the B2B e-commerce sector,
“India has over 500,000 building and manufacturing micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME)’s and as this number grows JSW One aims to cater to all their building materials requirements through our advanced and technology enabled products and services,” said Parth Jindal, Director of JSW One Platforms.
According to the statement, the digital adoption and desire to increase resilience in supply chains have prompted Indian MSMEs and enterprises to go online.
In January 2021, JSW Group rolled out its e-commerce business, JSW One Platforms, to be an industry-leading platform within India’s manufacturing and construction industries.
JSW One Platform leverages JSW Group’s strength in manufacturing and building materials, tech-enabled logistics and credit to be a platform of choice for MSMEs and enterprises in India.
The company launched its e-commerce platform jswonemsme.com in July 2021 and has since become a trusted platform across the country.
The company also operates a turn-key home construction business called JSW One Homes.
“We are delighted to have Mitsui as our first institutional investor. We are excited about their experience of working in the B2B industry across various markets in the world,
“Their investment will help us penetrate deeper into the industrial and construction industries. We also look forward to bringing other industry segments onto the platform and will continue to leverage technology to be an industry-leading platform for MSMEs,” said Gaurav Sachdeva, Chief Executive Officer of JSW One Platforms.
Meanwhile, Mitsui believes that its investment in JSW One Platforms will lead to a restructuring of supply chain in India.
It opined that JSW One’s digital platform will accelerate the digital discovery of supply across manufacturing and construction industries.
“Our investment and partnership with JSW One Platforms not only signals our belief in the firm’s robust business model, but also our conviction in the long-term growth prospects of the B2B e-commerce space, which was catalysed by the COVID-19 pandemic,
“We look forward to working together to realize JSW One Platform’s strategic vision of becoming a key industry player in the region with our contribution for expanding supply source and wider product portfolio for targeting industry,” said Masaharu Okubo, Managing Officer, Country Chairperson in India of Mitsui.
Mitsui is a global trading and investment company with a diversified business portfolio that spans approximately 63 countries in Asia, Europe, North, Central and South America, The Middle East, Africa and Oceania.
The firm has built a strong and diverse core business portfolio covering the mineral and metal resources, energy, machinery and infrastructure, and chemicals industries.
Leveraging its strengths, Mitsui has further diversified beyond its core profit pillars to create multifaceted value in new areas, including innovative energy solutions, healthcare and nutrition and through a strategic focus on high-growth Asian markets.
This strategy aims to derive growth opportunities by harnessing some of the world’s main mega- trends: sustainability, health and wellness, digitalization and the growing power of the consumer.