BENGALURU: Home service marketplace UrbanClap has re-branded itself as Urban Company as it gears up for a phase of consolidation, particularly in international markets. According to the company, the new brand will capture the Gurgaon-based start-up’s ambition to be a horizontal gig marketplace, with a global footprint and leadership position across service categories like beauty and wellness and home repairs and maintenance.
Since its inception in the year 2014, Urban Company has expanded to four countries — India, Australia, Singapore, and the UAE — built a fleet of more than 25,000 trained professionals and served over five million households. The start-up offers a vast spectrum of services related to make-up, spa massages, grooming, repairs, cleaning, painting, pest control, etc. The company, which had even branched into offering fitness and yoga training at customers’ homes, now claims to be India’s and the UAE’s largest home services company.
“It was also important for us to have a brand that is globally acceptable. From the neighbourhoods of Darling Harbour in Sydney to the condominiums of Gurgaon, Urban Company is a simple name with universal appeal. This is enabled by working closely with our service partners, helping them with up-skilling, financing, insurance, product procurement etc., transforming them into micro-service entrepreneurs,” said Abhiraj Bhal, co-founder, Urban Company.
According to the company, it will focus on strengthening presence in the existing international markets and may look at future international expansion only in 2021. In India, the company plans to have a presence in the top 50 largest cities and offer mass services to increase its base size. The company is currently present in 14 cities in the country.
For the financial year ended March 31, 2019, the company’s gross revenue had more than doubled to `116 crore from `46 crore the previous year. However, the company’s operating loss had increased by 26 per cent to `72 crore during the same period. The company had raised $75 million in its last funding round closed in August last year. The Series E round led by Tiger Global Management had increased its valuation to close to $1 billion.