Shipway, a Shipping Automation Startup, to be Acquired by Unicommerce

Nitin Konde, Varun Bhardwaj

Nov 13, 2024 — 2 min read

Unicommerce to Acquire Shipping Automation Startup Shipway

Shipway, a shipping automation startup based in Gurugram, will be acquired by Unicommerce Esolutions, an e-commerce software company, as per the official statement released by the company on 11 November 2024.

According to Unicommerce, the transaction will be finalised in phases. It would pay INR 68.4 crore to acquire a 42.76% share in the first leg. Within a year, the remaining amount will be purchased through a stock exchange or merger, assuming full ownership of Shipway. Through the acquisition, Unicommerce will be able to offer solutions for courier aggregation, shipment automation, and return minimisation, extending its product line from the pre-purchase to the post-purchase e-commerce segments.

The Acquisition will Expand Company’s Profile

According to a statement from the firm, the acquisition would also allow Unicommerce to provide an integrated marketing platform with AI-enabled, automated solutions that let retailers and brands target customers with tailored, segmented, and widely-reaching marketing campaigns to boost conversions.

In addition to its four main products, Unicommerce has recently added two new ones: UniShip, which handles shipping tracking and returns, and UniReco, which handles payment reconciliation following order fulfilment. According to Kapil Makhija, managing director and chief executive of Unicommerce, the software solutions from Shipway and Unicommerce together would provide a one-stop, seamless solution to streamline e-commerce for companies in India.

Locking Horns Directly with Zomato-backed Shiprocket

With this acquisition, Unicommerce will face off against Shiprocket, a company backed by Zomato that provides direct-to-consumer firms with services like shipping and checkout.

Unicommerce was established in 2012 and provides technology solutions for managing e-commerce platforms, warehouse and inventory management, order management, omnichannel retail management, and seller management. For the quarter that ended on September 30, it reported operational revenue of INR 29 crore, up from INR 26 crore in the same period last year. Net profit reached INR 4.4 crore, a 21% year-over-year rise.

Unicommerce Entering into Pre-Purchase Solutions

With Shipway's "ConvertWay," Unicommerce is also branching out into pre-purchase solutions to assist firms in leveraging chatbots, AI-powered SMS and WhatsApp marketing, and customer support tools to increase consumer engagement. Additionally, Unicommerce will be able to offer its technological solutions to Shipway's 3,000 customers, which include companies like Durex, Lenskart, Juicy Chemistry, Tresmode, and Dot & Key, among others, thanks to the acquisition. Shipway's range of software solutions will also be available to Unicommerce's current clientele, which currently numbers over 3,550.

Gaurav Gupta and Vikas Garg, co-founders of Shipway, expressed their happiness at the news of Unicommerce's acquisition of Shipway. Unicommerce has established a strong, lucrative, and rapidly expanding business in addition to a dynamic technology environment. When combined, the two companies' goods will be able to fully meet the expanding technological requirements of e-commerce companies.