Fashion discovery startup Wooplr, which was founded in 2013, having then pivoted to the social commerce model, has reportedly shut down. According to an Entrackr report, the company was struggling to raise funds amid severe cash crunch.
Entrackr quotes sources as saying that Bengaluru-based Wooplr has been looking for an acquisition deal after existing investors refused to infuse more funds. It was also reportedly in talks with a Chinese investor CDH Investments, which failed and CDH chose to invest in its rival GlowRoad instead. Existing investors in Wooplr are Trifecta Capital, Sistema Asia Fund, Amereus Group, and Helion Ventures.
Wooplr was founded by former McAfee employees Arjun Zachariah, Soumen Sarkar, Ankit Sabharwal, and Praveen Rajaretnam. In 2016, Soumen and Praveen reportedly left the company they founded.
According to a YourStory report, the decision was taken by the board due to the limiter available capital. Technology backend and logistics were reportedly its biggest cost, apart from cash-on delivery, which it was also finding difficult to sustain.
Wooplr was reportedly in advanced talks with fashion e-tailer LimeRoad and Chinese e-commerce platform Club Factory, among others for an acquisition.
The YourStory report also claims that an email was sent by Wooplr to community partners suggesting a pause in operations, with orders being stopped since mid-April. An anonymous Twitter user, who goes by the username Unicon Baba also tweeted a leaked email in which Wooplr has written to its vendors about temporarily shutting down operations.
“Due to unforeseen circumstances, we have had to temporarily shut down our operations. Hence request you to support us in this difficult time. WE are trying our best to resolve any pending payments over the course of the next few months. We will send you an update over the course of time. Look forward to your support and fruitful continued association,” the email posted by Unicon Baba states.
Employees too, have reportedly been asked to leave, but were given one month’s salary as severance.
Wooplr’s competitors include Meesho, Shop101, and Glowroad.