Startups that shut down in 2016

The second quarter of 2016 witnessed a lot of layoffs and shutdowns of startups which came into existence just in 2015. Lack of funds, plummeting sales and rising competition were the major reasons for the shutdowns.

Here are  some leading startups that shut their shops in 2016:

GrocShop

The Mumbai-based startup offered grocery shopping from the comfort of homes or offices at competitive costs. The startup was founded in November 2014 by IIT-Bombay alumni Rahul Kumar and Ayush Garg. It was a part of Microsoft’s startup programme, BizSpark, and also among the 16 startups which were selected for the Google Launchpad programme. It reportedly failed to find a profitable growth model in a segment which was otherwise attracting investors in droves.

TinyOwl

Food-ordering firm TinyOwl shut down its operations in May in all 11 cities where it was operational, except Mumbai. The move was, however, said to be temporary as the company wanted to re-brand itself and return with a better product. Founded in 2014, the startup faced several financial problems and laid off more than 600 employees between September 2015 and January 2016.
Dazo

Dazo, an app-based service that curated and delivered meals, has suddenly shut down its operations in October this year—barely a year after it started. It came as a surprise to many as the company was backed by bigwigs such as Google India chief Ranjan Anandan, TaxiForSure co-founder Aprameya Radhakrishna, and former Freecharge chief executive Alok Goel. But Dazo is not an exception. Several food delivery startups have taken a hit in 2016 primarily they were struggling to raise fresh rounds of funding and do not have money to sustain operations beyond a few months.

PepperTap

On-demand grocery delivery startup PepperTap rolled back its consumer-centric app in April 2016. The move to shut down its operations came due to pressure from rivals including Grofers and Bigbasket, which raised substantial funding. It harmed employees as well as its sister concern logistic company NuvoEex which has Snapdeal as its biggest customer.

Fashionara

 AskMe

The consumer internet search platform shut down in August. The company probably took the decision due to severe cash crunch. This unplanned shut down, according to sources, is due to the equally unplanned exit of its principal investor Astro Holdings. The shutdown left about 4,000 of its employees jobless. A variety of reasons, from weak technology to aggressive acquisitions, are said to be responsible for the online retailer’s failure.

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