Flipkart acquires minority stake in MapMyIndia to bolster its logistics network

Flipkart has acquired a strategic minority stake in MapMyIndia. MapMyIndia is a leading company in India at digital map data, GPS navigation, tracking, location-based apps and GIS solutions.With this partnership, Flipkart plans to deploy location intelligence capabilities across its logistics network. This will enable to strengthen its first-mile pickup, and last mile delivery operations, the company said in a press release. The partnership will give Flipkart’s strategy to transform supply chain through technology a further boost.It will be able to license map data and location technologies from MapmyIndia. This means a boost to Flipkart’s existing supply chain and logistics operations, eventually adding to the customer experience by making it timely and hassle free.[caption id="attachment_218963" align="aligncenter" width="640"]

Flipkart hopes to transform its supply and logistics chain ecosystem through MapMyIndia[/caption]With Flipkart’s investment, MapmyIndia’s early financial investors, Nexus Venture Partners and Lightbox Ventures are said to exit the company. MapmyIndia will continue to independently serve its existing consumers.Speaking on the occasion, Binny Bansal, COO and Co-founder, Flipkart, said, “With this strategic investment, we are taking another concrete step toward transforming the supply chain ecosystem in India, making technology and information the driver of our supply chain and logistics solutions. The integration of comprehensive and accurate location data will allow us to deliver an even more personalized and delightful experience to our customers. This partnership is a strategic fit that gives us a sustainable competitive advantage. We maintain our position as the dominant player in the e-commerce space as we continue to invest heavily in scaling our technology and platforms, always ensuring that our customers get maximum value from their association with us.”