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Deconstructing MSME Retail Supply Chains with Nipun Mehra of Ula

Published on November 26, 2021

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This week we are releasing an incredible podcast episode with Nipun Mehra, Founder & CEO of Ula. This B2B eCommerce platform recently raised US$87Mn Series B led by blue-chip global investors Tencent, Prosus, B Capital, and Jeff Bezos.

The MSME market has long been a core thematic vertical at AC Ventures where we believe the power of technology can create enormous value for the 63M enterprises that make up this overwhelming segment of the economy.

In this deep dive episode, Nipun and Adrian Li, Founder & Managing Partner of AC Ventures will share many learnings of Ula’s journey and discuss the deeper insights from the MSME industry.

In this episode we cover:

  • The origin story of Ula as well as how his prior experience all played a role in what he’s doing today
  • How did he break down the opportunity within the MSME space, segment the myriad of problems that they face, and use these insights to develop the Ula product
  • What are the nuances of Indonesia’s retail consumers that make Ula’s B2B2C strategy so powerful especially with the dominance of incumbent horizontal marketplace platforms?
  • What were the strategies and tools he used to scale the business over 100X during the COVID pandemic?
  • Where Ula is headed in the future?

About

Nipun Mehra is the Founder & CEO of Ula, a horizontal multi-category wholesale eCommerce platform that combines the technology, tools, and skills of modern retail with the lean cost structure of traditional micro-retail – bringing the best in the selection, prices, and working capital to small store owners to increase their overall income.

Nipun has an illustrious background working at the best-known names in eCommerce such as Amazon and Flipkart. He has also worked in venture capital with Sequoia India and was part of the leadership team at the payments unicorn Pine Labs as Chief Product and Strategy Officer.

AC Ventures (ACV) is a top Southeast Asian venture capital firm that invests in early-stage startups focused on Indonesia and ASEAN, with over US$500 million in assets under management. The firm's mission is to empower entrepreneurs with more than just capital by combining operational experience, industry knowledge, deep local networks, and resources. ACV's team has invested in over 120 tech companies in the region since 2012. With a team of more than 35 professionals led by Adrian Li, Michael Soerijadji, Helen Wong, and Pandu Sjahrir, it has offices in Jakarta and Singapore.