Hello,
It looks like Ambani and Adani are preparing to chart a different course in Future (Retail).
Two of India’s largest conglomerates—Reliance Retail and Adani Group—have opted out from the final bidding process for Future Retail, reported ET NOW. The report added that six final bids have been received for the company, with realty firm Space Mantra leading the pack.
Meanwhile, Walmart-owned Flipkart is experiencing a slew of top-level departures. Adarsh Menon, Senior Vice President (SVP) and Head of New Businesses, including Shopsy, Cleartrip, and ReCommerce, is said to be leaving the company.
Two other senior executives are also rumoured to be departing from Flipkart—Chanakya Gupta, VP of Strategic Partnerships and D2C Brand Accelerator (Flipkart Boost), and Ravish Kumar Sinha, SVP. Last month, Chief Architect Utkarsh B also quit after over a decade at the company.
In other news, Google believes its Play Store payments policy is CCI-compliant as the Alphabet Inc-owned company advances to implement it in India. The tech giant said that its 15% or less developer fees are among the lowest of any major app store.
Last but not least, an attempt to ‘demystify’ the myths around MSG.
In today’s newsletter, we will talk about
- Bounce bags $20M funding
- What trans community wants?
- A global culinary adventure
Here’s your trivia for today: Who was named the first Time Person of the Year (called Man of the Year or Woman of the Year until 1999)?
E-mobility
Bounce bags $20M funding
E-mobility startup Bounce is set to close its latest Series E funding round at $20 million, with participation from existing investor Sequoia Capital India and others. The startup has also set its sights on an IPO in the next couple of years, a source close to the matter told YourStory.
Not a winter:
- Bounce closed $5.3 million of the $20 million in March this year, per an RoC filing with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.
- The startup, which started as a two-wheeler booking company in 2014, has raised nearly $200 million. Its Series D round, which the company finalised just before the pandemic hit, closed at $105 million.
- In the FY ending March 31, 2022, it reported a consolidated loss of Rs 243.3 crore, lower than Rs 305.6 crore in the year-ago period.
Human rights
What trans community wants?
On March 28, the TNPSC exam results were out, and no trans candidate made the cut. Subsequently, in April, which marks Dalit History Month, Dalit-trans activist Grace Banu began a campaign demanding horizontal reservation for trans people in the state.
She believes this is the only way to address the intersectional discrimination the community’s youngsters face based on their gender, socioeconomic status, and caste as they enrol in public services.
Reservations first:
- Trans people in the state say horizontal reservation is the way forward to get more representation in government jobs.
- In March 2022, the Madras High Court recommended the Tamil Nadu government provide a specific percentage of the special reservation to transgender people in public employment, besides the concessions extended to the socially and economically backward classes.
- A field survey in Delhi and UP showed that no trans person had a job in the private sector, the government, or NGOs, and more than 90% were deprived of employment opportunities.
MSME
A global culinary adventure
During the COVID-19 lockdown, sisters Dikshita and Ojasvi Sharma, with their mother Hema Sharma, launched a condiments and sauces business.
They began their entrepreneurial journey from home by making sauces, including arrabbiata and marinara for Italian dishes and Harissa, a North African spice, which led to the birth of the Mumbai-based sauce and condiment brand—Chilzo.
Spice and sweet:
- The founders established a factory in Vasai in October 2021 with an initial investment of Rs 40 lakh. The commercial operations began in January 2022.
- In FY23, the business made a turnover of Rs 1.2 crore. Chilzo is available in over 80 stores in Mumbai, Delhi, and Kolkata.
- Chilzo is trying to diversify its product line beyond sauces and condiments and intends to explore some relatively-unknown cuisines in India such as Argentinian and Spanish.
News & updates
- Surprise rally: A digital token launched 12 years ago as a more transaction-friendly version of Bitcoin is drawing the attention of speculators after a meme-token frenzy drove up costs on the largest blockchain. Litecoin has rallied almost 20% since May 8, when fees on Bitcoin reached a high of $30 per transaction.
- Early adopter: Rohit Prasad, SVP at Amazon and Head Scientist for Alexa, said the company is right in the middle of the boom in generative AI. He added that contrary to ChatGPT, which is accessible through a web browser, Alexa is an “instantly available, personal AI” people can communicate with by voice.
- Up to our ears: The Institute of International Finance said global debt rose by $8.3 trillion in the first three months of this year compared to the end of 2022 to $304.9 trillion, the highest since the first quarter of last year and second-highest quarterly reading ever.
Who was named the first Time Person of the Year (called Man of the Year or Woman of the Year until 1999)?
Answer: Charles Lindbergh in 1927. He made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance of 5,800 km, flying alone for 33.5 hours, one of the most consequential flights in history.
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