Chandigarh
19 May 2017
DIVYA AZAD
Dr. Ritesh Malik, founder of Innov8 & Project Guerrilla has invested seed capital in Chandigarh based startup ‘Pumpkart’.
Pumpkart is India’s largest online niche platform for selling water pumps started by KS Bhatia in 2014. Water pump industry is growing at a 15% annual rate & bound for growth as water scarcity hits developing nations like India.
Mr. Bhatia has the vision to create the less known & non-exciting pump industry into a technology led high moving consumer good. With his vision to sell pumps by educating customers & creating a deeply penetrated distribution network, Bhatia has created an apple style store in Chandigarh which sells pumps of various brands including his own.
When asked about the news, Mr. Bhatia said “It’s great to have Dr. Ritesh Malik on board in our vision to solve one of India’s most challenging problems, water. India is exporting pumps to over 100 countries in the world but still, the domestic market is highly fragmented. Our focus is not to deviate from our core which is the pump industry & revolutionize the way pumps are being bought & used in the country”.
Pumpkart is also experimenting with Pumpkart Services, a platform to service the pumps bought from the platform. Bhatia mentions that Pumpkart is working on revolutionizing after sales service, which in the Pump Industry has been quite inefficient. “Creating a technology platform for farmers etc. who are the largest consumers of water pumps helps them keep their log of inefficient pumps as low as possible, which in turn improves the outcome of their crops.”Adds Bhatia.
Dr Ritesh Malik said “Mr. Bhatia has an industry experience of over 17 years & his passion for changing a niche vertical like water pumps is commendable. I was moved by the sheer passion & focus he has for a non-glamorous product like water pumps. He’s one of the most determined entrepreneurs I have met in my life”.
Earlier this year, Sundar Pichai mentioned ‘Pumpkarts’ example in his visit to India, & appreciated Bhatia for his vision of converting a traditionally run offline business into an online initiative.
