Urban India is becoming more and more common not to have to wait – at least when goods and services are to be delivered. You only need to consider the Breakneck rate, where instant traditions such as Blinkit, Zepto and Swiggy Instamart have increased and will continue to see adoption in the country.
QuicklySuch a start that allows users to book and use cleaning, laundry and home services within 10 minutes, utilizing this change in consumer behavior and now comes out of secrecy with a round seed of $ 2 million led by Bain Capital Ventures in a $ 12.5 million.
Investors are likely to invest in such newly formed businesses, given their potential for their growth, but Pronto’s funding comes at a time when people are increasingly sensitive to the way GIG workers are treated by platforms.
Just two months ago, another home service provider, Urban Company, Urban Company, faced intense public reaction to start a similar service. Called MaidsThe 15 -minute cleaning service quickly triggered a disruption to social media, mainly for the language Urban Company used in its advertising campaign. The company later renamed Insta Help servicebut many, including the GIG workers’ unions, did not seem satisfied with only one brand.
For its part, Pronto offers cleaning, washing machine and cooking services with three different timing options: instant (10 minutes), scheduled and repetitive. Services are offered 24 hours a day and the start guarantees access to 10 minutes of service in all supported areas. The company claims more than 1,000 customers in the northern Indian city of Gurugram.
Pronto’s founder and chief executive, Anjali Sardana, says her company aims to deal with workers’ concerns in an approach that is “Win, Win, Win Business” for all stakeholders.
“What is missing from many languages around these services is that they treat workers such as goods, treat them as inputs, this is not the way we work,” he told TechCrunch. “We are sitting at the same nodes where these workers come in and come out every day and the reason is that once you begin to put the separation between yourself and the worker, you lose empathy for them.”
Government sources estimate that India has Nearly 4 million domestic workersAlthough unofficial sources say the number is more in the area of 50 million. However, most of these workers are part of the informal labor market, which Pronto considers as a key competitor.
Pronto says his employees can win about ₹ 22,000 (about $ 258) a month if they work eight hours a day for 30 days. It also offers performance bonuses that can receive their total pay in ₹ 25,000- ₹ 26,000 (about $ 293 to $ 304) per month.
These amounts are significantly higher than domestic assistants in urban locations such as the Delhi-NCR area are usually paid, which is about 9,000, According to the International Federation of Internal Workers (PDF). Sardana says it also functions as an organization to help workers when dealing with exploitation or abuse – a Problem of domestic assistants They have fought in the country for decades.
The quick service model
Speed has become the new normal for many urban Indians, but does this mean that people do not want to wait for even an hour to clean their home? Sardana thinks about it.
“When they need something, they need it right away,” he said. “For this customer, possession of 10 minutes is huge because they no longer need to plan ahead.”
Pronto began pushing its service in December at Gurugram before starting its first junction in late March. So far, the company claims that 70% of its customers requested its services twice within 14 days.
The start operates two nodes at Gurugram, each of the customers within a two -mile radius. Sardana said 70% to 80% of Pronto’s demand comes from 500 meters – about two to three minutes – each node. Employees are not required to return to the junction between jobs, although they have to start and finish their shifts there.
Avoiding committees
Pronto avoids the model of the committee employed by most employees, rather than paying employees per four -day displacement, once every two weeks. The company maintains the fees that charges customers.
The company said it plans to start paying employees per week and even let them choose to be paid at any time during their payment cycles, which domestic workers often demand such disorganization.
“Finally, we are going to build many” almost fintech “products for workers to provide services they need, as many of these people are struggling to access these resources differently,” Sardana said. The start is also planning to launch a health insurance product for “very soon” employees, he added.
To ensure that her clients are being verified and examined, Pronto is doing home training, government identities and police verifications and court checks, Sardana said. He also considers the provision of training and upgrading services to employees based on customer comments.
The start plans to open 10 new nodes at Gurugram over the next three months and increase the network of employees to 700 and its staff counts to 50 – from more than 150 employees and 21 employees today.
Eventually, it plans to offer more services beyond cleaning and washing machine, but its focus is currently on the extension – it goes deeper into Gurugram and enters new markets such as Mumbai and Bangalore.
