MeraTractor Has Raised Rs. 5 Crore In Pre-Series A Funding

A Pune-based ‘Phygital’ start-up for farm mechanization products MeraTractor, has raised INR 5 crore in a Pre-Series A funding, elevating the total capital raised to 7.25 crore following this round.

Mr. Vibhor Sahare, CEO & Co-Founder of ANS Commerce and Ex-CEO & Co-Founder of Gaadi.com, Real-Time Angel Fund, and Digital Futuristic Angels Network, led the funding round. The newly raised funds will be used to expand the dealership network's visibility and adopt new technologies to organize supply channels.

MeraTractor, an agritech startup, is attempting to build an entire ecosystem in order to become a one-stop solution for all stakeholders involved in farm mechanization. Despite having few assets, the company manages the entire transaction and offers farmers, dealers, financiers, and new tractor OEMs a viable business model. Its dealership network is based in rural areas, which are slated to become its entry point into the entire rural business opportunities related to the farm sector.

"MeraTractor team's integrated ecosystem approach to addressing structural problems in the used tractor market impressed us. It's a unique niche within the larger agri-tech space that has the potential to have a significant impact in democratizing tractor ownership," said the lead investors. 

Talking about the problem that MeraTractor is trying to solve, Sajith Abraham, Co-founder, MeraTractor, stated, "There has been a lot of effort put into crop cultivation, improving yield, farm-gate solutions, and the government's push to increase farmer income. However, farm mechanization for Indian farmers, of which over 85% are smallholders, has been largely overlooked due to limited purchasing power. This creates difficulties for an unassuming farmer, beginning with discovery, financing facilities, and other key milestones in the process. MeraTractor's solution is to bridge the gap between a smallholder farmer and access to farm mechanization / financial products."

"The farm mechanization industry is poised for significant disruption, and as a result, it has fostered an environment for innovation that will support start-ups like MeraTractor in addressing the sector's inefficiencies," said Monak Gohel, Co-founder, MeraTractor.

Commenting further he stated, “Since we reckon farm power is a crucial component of agriculture, we are thrilled about the fundraising effort because it will hasten our quest to expand the network by taking advantage of the enormous rural business opportunities that lie ahead.”

MeraTractor aspires to be a modern manufacturer that assists in selling farm mechanization products to small and marginal farmers. Its business strategy is based on developing a full eco-system that combines the physical and digital worlds, hence the term "Phygital network." The network was created to assist partner dealers with everything from tractor supply to demand generation to tractor sales, name transfer documentation, bringing in banking partners for tractor loans, and much more. Revenue for the company is generated by adding value at each point of transaction.

Among the notable investors who took part in the funding round were, Gaurav Gupta, CEO of Adani Capital, Co-founder of DeHaat Shashank Kumar and Amrendra Singh, Credenc Founder Avinash Kumar, and Arvind Kumar, Business Head of the Agri division at Force Motors and Ex-CEO of Trringo and Lemkin India.

About the Start-Up

MeraTractor was founded by two ex-bankers to create an eco-system (a Phygital network) that organizes how farm mechanization products/rural financial products are sold in India. The main objective is to integrate technology (front end/back end platforms) and a physical network, which is MeraTractor branded unique dealership owned by local rural entrepreneurs, to create a one-stop solution for all investors involved in farm mechanization, such as small and marginal farmers, financial institutions, tractor OEMs, and so on.