Indian e-commerce startup Meesho has posted its first-ever profit, a major milestone for the company as it plans to go public in the next 12-18 months.
Meesho, which competes with Amazon and Walmart’s Flipkart in India’s fast-growing e-commerce market, targets smaller towns and cities with unbranded products like clothes and cosmetics. It was last valued at nearly $7 billion, according to PitchBook data.
The company’s revenue between January-June was more than $400 million, and Meesho expects it to cross $800 million by the year end.
“We are excited to have turned profitable for the first time,” said Meesho CEO and co-founder Vidit Aatrey. “This is a testament to the hard work of our team and the trust that our sellers and customers have placed in us.”
Meesho is backed by a number of investors, including SoftBank, Sequoia Capital, and Naspers.
Aatrey said that Meesho plans to use the proceeds from its IPO to expand its reach to more customers and sellers in India. The company also plans to invest in new technologies, such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, to improve its platform.