How Urban Company created tech-led value in the at-home services space

When platforms effectively remove the intermediary, they can generate irresistible value for both suppliers and customers. This is the kind of shakeup three IITians imagined for the disorganized at-home services business. Abhiraj Bhal of Urban Company and Abhinav Chaturvedi of Accel talk about their ‘no drama’ journey.
How Urban Company created tech-led value in the at-home services space
How Urban Company created tech-led value in the at-home services space
47 Mins
Available on your favorite podcast app
Guests
Abhinav Chaturvedi
Abhinav Chaturvedi
Partner at Accel
Abhinav Chaturvedi joined Accel in 2012 and focuses on consumer, fintech, and saas investments. Abhinav has led investments in Acko (new age digital insurance), Ally (business performance management), Drip Capital (global trade-finance), Stanza Living (student housing platform), UrbanCompany (local services marketplace), and other seed/early-stage businesses. Abhinav holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee.
Abhiraj Singh Bhal
Abhiraj Singh Bhal
Co-founder and CEO, Urban Company
Abhiraj Singh Bhal is the co-founder and CEO of Urban Company, the largest home services platform in Asia. Since its inception in November 2014, Urban Company has served tens of millions of customers across 35+ cities through a fleet of nearly 30,000+ trained service professionals. He is an alumnus of IIT-K and IIM-A
About 
Urban Company

Know what is harder than pivoting when the going gets tough? Pivoting when the going is good.

On the surface, most metrics were scaling efficiently for Urban Company (previously UrbanClap) at the end of 2015. The tech company mainly generated leads for at-home service providers. But founders Abhiraj Bhal, Varun Khaitan, Raghav Chandra recognized that improving the experience of suppliers and customers would require deeper involvement. They needed to build a full stack marketplace with trained professionals.

Eight years later, the company is valued at $2.8 billion. After proving their chops by taking the beauty industry online, Urban Company went on to digitally connect customers with a range of professional services including cleaning, repairs, electrical works, plumbing, and carpentry. 

When they first looked into the space, at-home services in India had been full of holes. The founders, all three from IIT Kanpur, knew that the problem had the potential to keep them busy for a lifetime. So they joined hands in 2014 to bring in organization and digitization.

We’re looking for the next generation of successful Indian marketplaces. If you’re an early-stage marketplace founder, apply now here or learn more about the #DecodingMarketplaces Startup Hunt.
We’d love to hear about your experiences with marketplaces. Let us share our learnings and build a better and stronger ecosystem. Write to us at seedtoscale@accel.com to be a part of the Accel family.
47 Mins
   •   
December 1, 2022
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