Rural commerce startup Rozana raises $22.5 Mn led by Bertelsmann India

Rural commerce startup Rozana has raised $22.5 million led by Bertelsmann India Investments (BII) with participation from Fireside Ventures and existing investors.

Earlier to this round, the startup had raised $2.5 million in its pre-Series A round from 3one4 Capital and Europe's IEG - Investment Banking Group in April 2022.

The new proceeds will be used to expand Rozana’s warehousing and logistics reach into new districts, enhance its technology platform, and ramp up hiring across technology, product and operations teams.

Founded in 2021 by Ankur Dahiya, Adwait Vikram Singh, Mukesh Christopher and Prithvi Pal Singh, Rozana operates an e-commerce platform and logistics network focused on serving the needs of rural communities in India. 

The startup presently serves more than 12,000 villages across 13 districts in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. 

Rozana has built a hyperlocal e-commerce model using village-based “peer partners” to make last-mile deliveries. This allows Rozana to offer rural customers convenience through delivery to their doorstep while keeping costs low. Currently, it has a network of over 18,000 peer partners, who can earn additional income through Rozana.