CARS24 explained

Cars24
Type:Private
Area Served:India
Thailand
Australia
UAE[1]
Location City:Gurgaon, Haryana
Hq Location Country:India
Revenue: (FY23)
Net Income: (FY23)[2]
Industry:Used cars
Num Employees:6,000+ (2023)
Subsid:Cars24 Financial Services

CARS24, is an Indian multinational online marketplace used car, headquartered in Gurgaon, India.[3] The company is considered among the four major organised players in the used car segment in India.[4]

History

CARS24 was founded in 2015 by Vikram Chopra, Mehul Agrawal, Gajendra Jangid and Ruchit Agarwal as a platform to buy and sell used cars. In 2021, the company expanded its operations internationally in several countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Thailand and Australia.[5]  

The CARS24 platform facilitates the transaction and has an offline presence.[6] Apart from selling used cars, the company's services include paperwork such as transferring the car to the name of the new owner which enables end-to-end transactions and offers an online auction platform to businesses looking to sell their pre-owned cars.[7] In 2019, the company started offering verified used cars where the company offered a buyback guarantee on the vehicles verified by inspection.[8]

The company operates 202 branches across 73 cities in India as of 2019.[9] Apart from its own branches, the company has a tie-up with more than 10,000 channel partners across 230 cities in India.[7] The company touched 150,000 annual car sales in 2019.[10]

In May 2020, the company launched CARS24 Moto.[11] Cars24 Moto is a service which allows customers to sell used two-wheelers such as motorbikes, mopeds and scooters on its platform. It also launched a service offering vehicles inspection services at the customers location in place of their branch.[12] [13]

In March 2024, CARS24 launched a new brand AutoPilot to cater to the growing demand of hiring car drivers on demand.[14] With its launch in Gurugram, it soon expanded to Delhi NCR, Bengaluru, Mumbai and Hyderabad. With the launch of AutoPilot, company started offering professional car drivers on an hourly basis. It aims to promote safer roads with driving assistance services and be a partner in the automotive journey of a car owner. It employs and provides a reliable income source for professional drivers.[15]

Funding and endorsements

CARS24 raised US$50 million in Series A and Series B rounds combined. In 2018, it raised a further US$50 million in Series C round of funding.[16]

CARS24 raised US$100 million in a Series D round of funding in 2019. Investors in the company include Sequoia Capital, Exor Seeds, partners of DST Global, Kingsway Capital, KCK and Unbound and Moore Strategic Ventures.[17] As a part of the series D round of funding, the company received an investment from cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who simultaneously became the company's brand ambassador.[18] Cars24 raised US$200 million in Series E round of funding in 2020 and became a unicorn startup as it was valued at over a $1 billion.

Apart from Dhoni, actors Boman Irani,[19] Mandira Bedi and Nawazuddin Siddiqui have endorsed the company in commercial advertisements.[20]

Cars24 became the primary and front-of-shirt sponsor of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) for 2022 Indian Premier League. Cars24's sponsorship of SRH marks the first time that a company from the second-hand cars category has sponsored an IPL team.[21]

Subsidiaries

The company established Cars24 Financial Services as a subsidiary in 2019.[22] The company received an NBFC license from Reserve Bank of India in July 2019.[23] Cars24 Financial Services provides consumer loan facilities to car dealers and end customers in the used car segment across 50 cities in India.[22] In 2019-20 the company claimed to have disbursed loans worth .[24]

Notes and References

  1. News: Cars24 to reduce burn rate further, target 'sustainable growth' . 31 December 2022 . The Economic Times.
  2. News: Cars24 registered marginal growth in revenues in FY23 . 3 November 2023 . Moneycontrol . 30 October 2023 . en.
  3. News: Gooptu . Biswarup . Cars24 set to pick up $80 million from backers . 10 July 2020 . The Economic Times . 14 May 2019.
  4. News: Mahindra First Choice plans to have 1,300 dealerships by Mar . 10 July 2020 . Outlook India . PTI.
  5. Web site: 2022-01-06. CARS24 Eyes $2 Bn In Revenue By FY23 On Back Of International Expansion, Financing Services. 2022-01-21. Inc42 Media. en-US.
  6. News: Ghaswalla . Amrita Nair . A new turn to used-car sales . 14 July 2020 . The Hindu Business Line . 20 February 2017 . en.
  7. News: Mukul . Jyoti . Used auto startup CARS24 develops vehicle matching app for dealers . 10 July 2020 . Business Standard India . 28 June 2020.
  8. News: Consumers Can now Buy Cars from CARS24 . 10 July 2020 . Business World India . en.
  9. News: The One Who Solves Supply Shall Create The Biggest Auto Company In India Vikram Chopra CARS24 . 10 July 2020 . Business World India . en.
  10. News: Chowdhary . Sudhir . Cars 24: Now buy and sell used cars sans any hassles . 10 July 2020 . The Financial Express . 29 July 2019.
  11. News: Chaudhary . Vikram . Cars24's two-wheeler vertical to be called Cars24 Moto: 200+ bikes, scooters sold post lockdown . 14 July 2020 . The Financial Express . 22 June 2020.
  12. News: CARS24 introduces pre-owned two-wheeler sales on its platform . 10 July 2020 . Outlook India . PTI.
  13. News: Singh . Rajiv . Cover Story: How Covid-19 Has Forced A Clutch Of Startups To Pivot . 10 July 2020 . Forbes India . en.
  14. News: 2024-03-29 . Cars24’s unique driver-on-demand service launched in Gurgaon: How to hire drivers for Rs 150/hour . 2024-10-18 . The Times of India . 0971-8257.
  15. Web site: www.ETAuto.com . CARS24 launches its driver on demand service - Autopilot - ET Auto . 2024-10-18 . ETAuto.com . en.
  16. News: Srinivasan . Supraja . Gooptu . Biswarup . CARS24 tanks up for a Rs 340 crore ride . 10 July 2020 . The Economic Times . 18 July 2018.
  17. News: Gooptu . Biswarup . Cars24 has closed $100 million in Series D funding . 10 July 2020 . The Economic Times . 18 October 2019.
  18. News: MS Dhoni invests in CARS24, roped in as brand ambassador . 10 July 2020 . The Indian Express . PTI . 13 August 2019 . en.
  19. News: Tanwar . Sangeeta . Selling a used car made easy . 10 July 2020 . Business Standard India . 20 July 2017.
  20. News: Cars24 appoints Hypersonic to lead new marketing campaign . 10 July 2020 . ANI News . ANI . en.
  21. Web site: 2022-02-09 . Sunrisers Hyderabad names Cars24 as principal sponsor . 2022-04-25 . SportsMint Media . en-US.
  22. News: Cars 24 gets NBFC licence . 10 July 2020 . The Financial Express . 26 July 2019.
  23. News: New consumer lending business key growth driver: Cars24 . 14 July 2020 . The New Indian Express . 24 September 2019.
  24. News: Mathur . Nandita . Cars24 Financial Services raises ₹10 crore in first debt funding . 10 July 2020 . Livemint . 9 July 2020 . en.