Online agri-input vendor BigHaat has raised $2.2 million in pre-series A funding led by Japanese investor Beyond Next Ventures and Rockstud Capital. Existing investor Ankur Capital and angel investors also participated in the latest round.

BigHaat will deploy the capital to strengthen its data and technology platform, hiring best talent in technology and marketing, and strengthening its supply chain to fuel aggressive growth, said Sateesh Nukala, CEO, BigHaat.

BigHaat is targeting engaging with over 10 million farmers across India over the next 24 months.

Founded in 2015, BigHaat has engaged with over three million farmers providing access to advisory and farm inputs such as seeds, fertilisers, chemicals, instruments and accessories. With the latest funding, the company has raised a total of $3 million.

Digital adoption

BigHaat aims to leverage the large market opportunity provided by farmers’ accelerated adoption of digital platforms. “I predict that in the next 2-3 years, every family will have at least one smartphone. That will be a game changer for digital platforms, making technology accessible to farmers,” said Sachin Nandwana, Co-founder, BigHaat.

The Bengaluru headquartered start-up provides farmers omni-channel access to advisory and products through digital touch-points (mobile app/web), a missed call for non-internet users, and feet-on-street presence. It offers vernacular advisory for rural users in multiple regional languages. “While many players in this segment acquire farmers primarily with feet on-street presence, BigHaat is the only leading player embracing digital channels for farmer acquisition and engagement,” Nukala said.

Additionally, BigHaat provides business intelligence and data analytics for many agri-inputs manufacturers about demand-supply, market feedback and new market opportunities, besides offering direct-to-farmer platform.

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