Leading industrialist Ratan Tata has invested in Moglix, an e-commerce company specialising in B2B procurement of industrial products, continuing his slew of investments in startups across the world.
This is Mr. Tata’s sixth investment this year after investing in five companies — DogSpot.in, Tracxn, CashKaro, FirstCry and Teabox in January.
Mr. Tata has invested an undisclosed amount in the company and with his expertise and keen interest in the sector, he will play an important role in mentoring Moglix on business growth, global expansion and leadership, Moglix said in a statement.
Founded in August 2015 by former Googler Rahul Garg, Moglix is focused on technologically disrupting the B2B Industrial products space for suppliers and buyers across the globe. It specialises in B2B procurement of industrial products such as MRO, fasteners and industrial electricals.
It is partnering manufacturers and distributors across these categories in India, China and other Asian countries.
Tata Trust Chairman and Senior Advisor to IDG Ventures India, Tata has made personal investments in startups, ranging from e-commerce firms to cab aggregators.
The top industrialist is an investor in firms like Snapdeal, Kaaryah, Urban Ladder, Bluestone, CarDekho, Sabse Technologies, China’s Xiaomi, Ola and DogSpot.in.
Moglix recently raised pre-Series A funding from Accel Partners and Jungle Ventures and the funds are being used to enhance the technology platform, build a deep supplier base as well as increase marketing spends across Asia.
“We are extremely pleased to have an icon of Indian manufacturing as our advisor. Mr. Tata’s contribution to the manufacturing sector has been inspirational and we look forward to his guidance as we steer the company towards transforming the buying and selling process for manufacturers in the country,” Mr. Garg, CEO and founder of Moglix, said.
He added that globally, top manufacturers have evolved towards adoption of technology for procurement and sales but Indian manufacturers have been slow to adopt technology, leading to process inefficiencies and limited marketing exposure.
“Moglix strongly believes that the unorganised supply chain in India can only be solved with a technology-first mindset,” he said.
