VAAN Moto in process of raising USD 7-8 million to expand product range, dealership network

Mumbai: Premium lifestyle electric mobility startup VAAN Moto has said it is in the process of raising USD 7-8 million in order to expand its product range and dealership network in the next 18 months.

VAAN Moto, which commenced selling its products from Kerala last December has a joint cooperation pact with Italian superbike maker Benelli for engineering and supply chain.

It currently has two e-bicycle models -- UrbanSport and UrbanSport Pro.

The company on Thursday made its debut in Mumbai with its first exclusive outlet and launched the two existing models for the city bikers.

"We are remain bootstrapped for three years and invested Rs 17 crore during this period. When we started production, we raised Rs 6 crore from Asian Energy to kick off the project.

"We are now raising the next pre-A series of funding worth USD 7-8 million to expand our e-bicycle product range and launch a scooter," Jithu Sukumaran Nair, founder-CEO of VAAN Electric Moto Pvt Ltd, told PTI.

He said that the company is in discussions with potential investors including venture capitalists and the existing investor, who have evinced interest in investing in the next round of funding.

Nair said that the company is looking to expand its e-bike portfolio to four products besides a scooter by March 2024 and added that the production of the third e-bike model is expected to commence soon.

By March 2024 Vaan Moto would have four model of e-bikes and a complete set of apparels and accessories, including smart watch, thereby offering a complete lifestyle product, he said.

"We have developed two models with Benelli. We also have an exclusive collaboration with them for bringing in their models to India as well," Nair stated.

Besides Benelli, it has also partnered with Kiska of KTM from Austria for its e-bikes. While VAAN Moto designs these electric bicycles, Benelli supplies components, and Kiska helps with the branding, as per the company.

Nair also said that the company has already retailed 325 e-bikes in southern market since its entry in that market in December last year, and it is expecting to clock 100 units per month in sales from cities like Mumbai.

"In the next three months, we are planning to launch in Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Pune. Our plant at Ernakulam in Kochi has a capacity to assemble 2,000 e-bikes a month, and (we) are initially targeting sales of 8,000 to 10,000 e-bikes a year," he said.

He said that VAAN will have presence across 14-15 states, covering more than 120 dealers and 4 exclusive showrooms, including in Bengaluru, Delhi, Assam, among others, by March 2024.

Besides, the company will also have its presence in other cities through multi-brand dealerships, he added.

In the 6-8 months, the target is to have 50-60 dealers in 5-6 cities or states that will cover  300-500 units per month with three models in different range, Nair said.

The company has partnered with 33 premium segment hotels and resorts for these e-bikes on revenue sharing basis, he added.