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Manavta
25 December, 2024
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“Kehte hain agar kisi cheez ko dil se chaho, toh poori kayanat usse tumse milane ki koshish mein lag jaati hai.”
In the cinema of business and entrepreneurship, startups are the underdogs turned superstars. A startup’s journey is no less than a Bollywood movie. It’s full of passion, struggles leading to triumph, and the main lead fulfilling its purpose. However, you must have heard it’s never about the destination but your journey. Similarly, profitable startups are the sheer dedication of some ambitious minds. They reached their destination and have journeyed from nothing to everything.
Furthermore, during these journeys, India was the most profitable land. It has given rise to several startups. Many of them flourished and turned into billion-dollar companies, whereas a few could barely manage to survive. In this modern era, the Indian business ecosystem is fuelled by the robust digital infrastructure, a vast consumer base, and increasing investor confidence. A profitable startup grows when all of these parameters fall into one line. Although India has over 50 startups slowly making their hold in the market, this blog lists India’s top 10 most profitable startups.
🏭 Industry: Food Delivery
🗓️ Founded in: 2010
💰 Revenue: Net profit of INR 176 crore for the 2nd quarter (September 30)
🧑🤝🧑 Founders: Deepinder Goyal and Pankaj Chaddah
“The first rule of entrepreneurship is that there is no rule.” – Deepinder Goyal
Who they are: Zomato is India’s top online food ordering and restaurant search platform. It started as the best restaurant search tool with restaurant names, food items, reviews, pricing, and other details. Over the years, it has become the most used online food-ordering app. The delivery personnel from Zomato shall pick up your order from the restaurant and deliver it to the specified address. Zomato has extended its footprint beyond India to over 24 countries. It has a presence in Sri Lanka, Qatar, Turkey, Brazil, and Indonesia. The company’s digital marketing strategy shows a tactical use of Google Adwords for effective ad campaigns.
🏭 Industry: Internet marketing B2B marketplace
🗓️ Founded in: 1999
💰 Revenue: Deferred revenue (on September 2024) increased to INR 1,483 crore
🧑🤝🧑 Founders: Dinesh Agarwal
Who they are: “IndiaMART, naam to suna hoga!” IndiaMART is among the largest online B2B marketplaces you must have heard about. It connects buyers with suppliers and has over 60% market share of the online classified space in the Indian B2B sector. It provides a single platform for small and medium enterprises, large enterprises, and individuals. IndiaMART is for both buyers and suppliers. IndiaMART is a convenient way for buyers to connect with sellers regarding a range of products. On the other hand, for suppliers, it is an opportunity to enhance business visibility, create a lead management system, and provide instant payment solutions.
🏭 Industry: Travel arrangements
🗓️ Founded in: 2006
💰 Revenue: Gross Transaction Value grew to INR 26,536 crore in FY24
🧑🤝🧑 Founders: Gaurav Bhatnagar and Ankush Nijhawan
Who they are: TBO was established to simplify travel solutions for businesses across the globe. It started with an airline ticketing company and is now a leading global travel distribution platform. TBO is listed in the BSE (Bombay Stock Exchange) and NSE (National Stock Exchange). It connects travel buyers and suppliers while ensuring streamlined transactions. Their services include air travel, hotels, rail, holiday packages, sightseeing, car rentals, transfers, cruises, and cargo. TBO uses data analytics, AI, and machine learning to enhance the visibility and sales of travel products. It has an inventory of over 1 million hotels and 750+ airlines. On TBO, payments are accepted in 55+ currencies, and there is 24×7 multilingual booking support for 11 languages.
🏭 Industry: Financial services (Insurance)
🗓️ Founded in: 2016 (India’s first unicorn of 2021)
💰 Revenue: INR 2,336 Crore gross premium collected in FY24
🧑🤝🧑 Founders: Kamesh Goyal
Who they are: Digit provides insurance facilities across different verticals, including health, travel, businesses, vehicles, etc. It aims to simplify insurance services and products even for a 16-year-old. Digit has over 2 million subscribers and 94% claims payout. It offers various products, such as auto insurance, personal accident coverage, cashless garages, and settling claims.
Digit Insurance uses cloud-based operations to help reduce infrastructure and operating expenses. Previously, the company raised two rounds of funds of up to $140 million from Fairfax Financial Holdings. It has a customer-centric approach that uses prudent underwriting and technology for its operational success.
🏭 Industry: Travel and hospitality
🗓️ Founded in: 2004
💰 Revenue: INR 9,570.3 Million in FY24
🧑🤝🧑 Founders: Bhanu Chopra
Who they are: RateGain Travel Technologies is a global AI-powered SaaS solution for the travel and hospitality industry. The company provides software solutions for hotels like channel managers, GDSs, metasearch, integrations, hotel content distribution, digital marketing, social media for hotels, travel intent for hotels, competitor pricing, and generating more bookings apart from others. RateGain has continued to outperform when benchmarked key metrics against other SaaS companies. Moreover, its AI-driven approach has proven beneficial in leveraging data insights and showing further signs of growth.
🏭 Industry: E-commerce
🗓️ Founded in: 2021
💰 Revenue: FY24 revenue doubles to INR 4,454 Crore
🧑🤝🧑 Founders: Kaivalya Vohra and Aadit Palicha
Who they are: Zepto is a 10-minute delivery app with 148 items, including snacks and beverages. You get everything from chai, coffee, breakfast options, and pastries to savoury snacks. It delivers over 25,000 products in different categories, and the company is now set to launch Zepto Cafe in Delhi. Zepto already had a cafe in Mumbai in 2022, offering branded and non-branded food items. In 2024, Zepto has raised over $1 billion. Further, it plans to raise an additional $300 million from Indian investors. Its USP, which makes it unique, is a 10 to 15-minute delivery facility. It has a network of 86+ dark store owners in 13 different areas until 2021.
🏭 Industry: Cosmetics
🗓️ Founded in: 2016
💰 Revenue: INR 1,920 (increase of 29% in FY24)
🧑🤝🧑 Founders: Ghazal Alagh and Varun Alagh
Who they are: Remember when Ghazal Alagh said, “It’s all about summing up the courage to take the first step, believe in yourself, and stay committed to the chosen path”? Ghazal Alagh has become a renowned personality. With her presence in Shark Tank India, everybody knows her. However, is that it? Surely not. Since the debut of her brand, MamaEarth has become a renowned brand worldwide. This is certainly not for her branding but for the fantastic and effective products she has come up with.
As the name suggests, Mamaearth is known for its natural and toxin-free beauty and personal care products. The company has a wide range of products, including skincare, hair care, body care, makeup, baby care, and a few household products. Mamaearth’s popular products are Ubtan Face Wash, Onion Hair Oil, Coco Milk Shampoo, Mineral Sunscreen, and Happy Heads Shampoo and Conditioner. Its products are exported to over 20 countries worldwide. Its revenue jumped from INR 109.8 crore in 2020 to INR 1,920 crore in 2024. Isn’t this a sign of enormous growth?
🏭 Industry: Online travel agency
🗓️ Founded in: 2008
💰 Revenue: INR 590.58 (32% increase in FY24)
🧑🤝🧑 Founders: Prashant Pitti, Nishant Pitti, and Rikant Pitti
Who they are: “Pushpa I hate tears… but I love discounts!” Perhaps not only the discounts but also amazing customer service and an exceptional business approach have made EaseMyTrip a popular startup. In 2008, travel bookings were simplified by EaseMyTrip. The platform is an online and offline booking portal for air tickets, hotels, holiday packages, train tickets, buses, cabs, and other activities.
Using EaseMyTrip gives you various trip deals, corporate facilities for business travel management, and other features. Its amusing deals might make you say, “Mugambo Khush Hua, Flights itni cheap kaise ho gayi.” Throughout India, a network of 85,000 EaseMyTrip agents takes the company to the next level each year. You will find EaseMyTrip’s overseas offices in Singapore, Dubai, the Maldives, and Bangkok. Since its establishment, the company has crossed several milestones to become a leading startup in India.
🏭 Industry: Consumer goods
🗓️ Founded in: 2012
💰 Revenue: INR 6,386 in FY24
🧑🤝🧑 Founders: Falguni Nayyar
Who they are: There was a time when girls used to like “Chocolate, lime juice, ice cream, toffiyan.” just like in Madhuri Dixit’s music video. However, since times have changed, fashion has become a trendsetter, from B-town to Hollywood vibes. In India, Nykaa is the first fashion platform to build your confidence. When Nykaa’s name pops up, your mind automatically goes to beauty, fashion, and wellness products. That’s what it is!
Nykaa is positioned among the top players in the physical and online markets. Its journey from 2012 is impressive, and it has further plans for expansion. As the beauty and personal care industry is expected to grow, Nykaa has a promising future in the upcoming years. Nykaa was started following the disparities in the Indian cosmetics market. Moreover, the company has a strong customer service system. Most importantly, Nykaa has built customer trust by offering authentic products directly from the manufacturing brands.
🏭 Industry: Fintech
🗓️ Founded in: 2017 (payments technology company was set in 2006)
💰 Revenue: INR 1,478.4 crore
🧑🤝🧑 Founders: Manish Khera
Who they are: FINO Payments Bank is a new-age digital banking partner in India. It has a presence in 7,24,671 banking outlets, 54 bank branches, and 130 customer service points. Its key investors are ICICI Bank, BPCL, Blackstone, and IFC Fino Payments Bank. Its services include domestic money transfers, international money transfers, account opening, Aadhar Enabled Payment System (AePS), cash at point, bill payments, mobile/DTH recharge, Cash Management Services, and travel bookings. Financial inclusion is the core of FINO’s business. The fintech industry is on the rise, so the future of FINO is on the upside of the hill.
India is recognised as a global startup hub with vast market potential. So, the land has given birth to many flourishing entrepreneurs and their startups. Some have already skyrocketed in the market, and some are running at full speed to become the top profitable startups in India. These names could be Shiprocket, BillDesk, Learning Routes, etc. Their previous sales revenue, profit, and market expansion have shown clear signs of positivity. However, if you still can’t find a relevant startup, picture abhi baaki hai mere dost. Here are several startups with future growth potential in different emerging sectors. Let’s explore them:
| Emerging Sectors | Indian Startups |
|---|---|
| EdTech | BYJU’s |
| Unacademy | |
| upGrad | |
| Learning Routes | |
| Information Technology (IT) | GrowthSchool |
| Jai Kisan | |
| Udaan | |
| Beauty and Lifestyle | Purplle |
| Myntra | |
| Tira | |
| Healthcare | BeatO |
| MrMed | |
| Netmeds | |
| Fintech | CRED |
| Groww | |
| Razorpay |
Here are seven factors that have contributed to the success of Indian startups:
Success in these high-stakes games is not just an innovative idea; it is about planning and execution. These startups have redefined the meaning of profitability and the dynamics of the Indian marketplace. Each startup discusses a unique story of passion, purpose, and resilience. From Zomato’s creative marketing to Nykaa’s reach, there’s much to learn for all budding entrepreneurs. What truly inspires everyone is how they have challenges and turn them into opportunities to continue to grow. The curtain may have fallen on this list, but the show goes on far beyond. The stage has yet to show several startups ready to be on the top list.
