Home Services Startup Taskbob Shuts Shop
Home services startup Taskbob bids adieu, becomes the first startup to shut shop in 2017.
Home services startup Taskbob has shut its operations, the company informed users in an email that was reviewed by BloombergQuint.
The decision came after the Mumbai-based startup failed to raise fresh funds, two people aware of the development told BloombergQuint.
“Taskbob will be shutting down its operations as of January 19. All the orders already placed in the system will be duly processed,” co-founder Aseem Khare said in the email.
Sometimes, things are not meant to be. Even though we could create a significant difference in customers’, service providers’ and teams’ lives, a solid business is created only by building scalability and profitability. And to achieve those in a low-margin business and in a tough external market proved unexpectedly daunting. More than what anyone could have expected.Aseem Khare, Co-Founder, Taskbob
Taskbob was awaiting the second tranche of about Rs 14 crore from IvyCap Ventures, which was expected to come in by November 30 last year, said the first person quoted above requesting anonymity. Without fresh funds, it could not have survived for more than two months, the person said.
The Mumbai-based startup had announced a Rs 28-crore Series A funding from Ivy Cap Ventures and existing investors Orios Ventures Partners and Mayfield India in February last year. It had received around Rs 14 crore in the first tranche.
The startup had reached out to bigger peers for an acquisition, but decided to down shutters after talks failed, the second person said.
Taskbob becomes the first startup to wrap up its operations in 2017.
Founded by IIT-Bombay graduates Khare and Abhiroop Medhekar in November 2014, Taskbob connected users to pre-screened professional servicemen to fix household appliances such as washing machines, air conditioners, computers and refrigerators.
In November last year, the company had acquired its smaller rival Zepper Services Pvt Ltd. with a plan to enter Bengaluru.
An email query sent by BloomberQuint to Taskbob did not elicit any response at the time of filing this report.
Ailing Home Services Startups
Home services industry, which had several startups until 2015, saw multiple closures last year, largely due to the high cost of customer acquisition.
BloombergQuint had reported earlier that UrbanClap, one of the heavily funded startups in the space, saw its losses mount to nearly Rs 60 crore on a revenue of mere Rs 2.8 crore for the financial year ended March 2016. UrbanClap’s co-founder Abhiraj Bhal had said that the startup spent Rs 300-400 to acquire each customer.
High cash-burn has seen many startups in the space either shut shop or get acquired last year. Paytm completed acquisition of services marketplace Near.in in January,2016. Bangalore-based Qyk changed its business model to become a house building services aggregator under a new name, Paperstone, in May. FindYahan was acquired by bigger rival Zimmber. Doormint, a Mumbai-based laundry services startup, closed down in September.