e-commerce
LimeRoad raises $45 million in less than a year
MUMBAI: LimeRoad, a social-shopping platform for women, has raised a series C financing following rapid growth in community engagement, scrapbook creation and revenue growth.
This two-year old company has raised total funds to the tune of $45 million in the past year and this round comes within ten months of its Series B financing. Tiger Global Management, an existing investor, leads the new round with participation from existing investors Lightspeed Venture Partners and Matrix Partners India.
Over the last year, LimeRoad has been steadily nurturing a unique hyperactive community that takes products from thousands of sellers from across the country and shows users how to transform even the most basic white t-shirt into a style statement.
The community posted more than 1.5 million style statements as “scrapbooks” last month alone, with per day postings reaching 100,000+, achieving 100x growth in less than a year.
“It’s transformational,” said a graphic design student in Delhi Komal, who has made 800 scrapbooks. She added, “Scrapbooking on LimeRoad makes me feel ultra stylish. It’s a daily routine that is a release after a hard day.”
A homemaker in Jharkhand, Jhanvi, who has created 2000+scrapbooks, stated, “I feel like I am getting out of my town. It has helped me personally develop, changed my sense of style. I purchase my looks for myself and love it. Now I try so many new things.”
LimeRoad’s machine algorithms rank order and display the highest quality scrapbooks for millions of users to find the trendiest products and styles.
LimeRoad was founded by Suchi Mukherjee, Prashant Malik and Ankush Mehra, who collectively have previously held leadership roles at eBay, Skype, Facebook, Samsung and Reliance Hypermarkets.
LimeRoad founder and CEO Suchi Mukherjee said, “We are revolutionizing the way lifestyle products are discovered and ultimately bought in India, and in doing so, we are changing social order. Smaller unique sellers from across the country are getting discovered, women from across the country are using scrapbooks as a medium of style expression, and millions of users are getting access to highly affordable and unique style.”
“We grew GMV 600 per cent in the last 12 months, thanks to our passionate users who visited our app on average more than 38 times in the last six months. That’s a delightful 76 times a year! As a result 80-85 per cent of our orders come from organic traffic.”
Tiger Global partner Lee Fixel said, “The uniqueness of LimeRoad lies in the passionate user base and the mission of providing an engaging platform for smaller brands to thrive. We love this approach and are investing behind it and behind the team executing the strategy.”
Lightspeed Advisory Services India managing director Bejul Somaia added, “We continue to be highly supportive of LimeRoad. This is a truly exceptional team that has already disproved many accepted notions in Indian online commerce as a result of which they are showing extraordinary organic traction.”
Matrix India managing director Avnish Bajaj said, “The LimeRoad team is a unique combination of a crystal clear vision combined with sheer execution prowess. We continue to be amazed by their sheer passion, sharp thinking and their core engagement metrics.”
e-commerce
Indian used car market matures with steady 6-10 per cent monthly sales in 2025
Cars24 report shows Baleno tops charts, Tier-2 cities drive 62 per cent demand and financing hits 52 per cent.
MUMBAI: Buckle up India, the used car market isn’t just cruising anymore; it’s shifting into a smooth, confident overdrive, proving that pre-loved wheels have officially become the nation’s smartest first choice. According to the latest Gears of Growth 2025 report by Cars24 and Team-BHP, every single month chipped in a rock-steady 6-10 per cent of annual volume in 2025. No wild festival spikes, no desperate year-end discounts just consistent, need-driven buying that screams market maturity.
Discovery has gone fully digital, with trust now riding shotgun on video. Pre-delivery inspections were googled by over 1.7 lakh Indians last year, while Youtube reviews turned casual scrollers into confident buyers. Even AI is steering decisions: search volumes for “buy” rocketed 7.2x, “new car” 8.1x, “sell” 2.3x and “challan” a whopping 9x year-on-year, with overall AI queries surging 6.7x.
The old NCR monopoly is history. Maharashtra now leads with 20.1 per cent share (up from 16.4 per cent), Karnataka jumped to 16 per cent (from 10 per cent), Gujarat surged to 13.1 per cent (from 8.7 per cent), Uttar Pradesh climbed to 12.5 per cent, Tamil Nadu to 11.7 per cent and Telangana to 10 per cent. Delhi’s slice shrank dramatically from 13.8 per cent to 5.8 per cent, and Haryana from 10.7 per cent to 5.6 per cent. The centre of gravity has clearly shifted: Tier-2 cities now command 62 per cent of sales versus 38 per cent in metros.
Hatchbacks still steal the show with 52 per cent share, SUVs revved up to 32 per cent (up sharply from previous years), while sedans eased to 16 per cent. Baleno became India’s undisputed used-car king at 15.5 per cent, followed by Grand i10 at 13.2 per cent and Kwid at 11.3 per cent. Nexon, Tiago, Elite i20, City, Swift, Amaze and Creta rounded out the top 10, with compact SUVs and feature-packed rides clearly winning hearts.
Buyers are spending more average selling price settled at Rs 5.47 lakh but not uniformly. Karnataka led at Rs 5.06 lakh thanks to newer models, Tamil Nadu at Rs 5.49 lakh, Maharashtra Rs 5.06 lakh, Gujarat Rs 5.05 lakh and Uttar Pradesh the most value-driven at Rs 4.90 lakh. Petrol ruled with 84.5 per cent share, diesel 9.46 per cent, petrol+CNG 5.96 per cent and EVs/hybrids a tiny 0.08 per cent. Manuals still dominate at 72 per cent, automatics at 28 per cent, with younger buyers, women and metro residents leaning more towards self-shifters.
Silver emerged as the nation’s favourite shade (over 30 per cent), teaming with white to claim 57 per cent of all cars. Financing is now the real hero, 52 per cent of buyers went the EMI route in 2025 (average Rs 11,400 monthly), up dramatically from 23 per cent in 2024, with non-metro markets hitting an impressive 58 per cent penetration. Digital lending handled the heavy lifting, especially for cars above Rs 7 lakh where financing crossed 60 per cent by early 2026.
From AI-powered confidence to feature-packed upgrades and EMI-friendly ownership, 2025 proved one thing loud and clear: India isn’t just buying used cars, it’s choosing smarter, bolder and far more exciting rides than ever before. The future of driving? It’s already on the road, and it’s looking remarkably well-certified.
