The agritech success story of Poshn, founded by Shashank Singh and Bhuvnesh Gupta, is a beacon of innovation in India’s agricultural landscape. Launched in November 2020, Poshn has transformed the way farmers, processors, and wholesalers trade, achieving a staggering ₹510 crore Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) in just three years. This isn’t just a business triumph—it’s a movement to empower farmers by cutting out middlemen and streamlining the supply chain.
Shashank, hailing from a farming family in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, and Bhuvnesh, from Jalandhar, Punjab, both understood the struggles of farmers firsthand. Shashank, a BITS Pilani and IIM Calcutta alumnus, had worked at Wipro, Blackbuck, and Uber. Bhuvnesh brought experience from OYO Rooms, Udaan, and BharatPe. Their shared passion for agriculture and frustration with inefficiencies—like middlemen-driven delays, high costs, and payment risks—sparked the idea for Poshn. “Farmers face too many hurdles due to intermediaries and paperwork,” Shashank noted in an interview. Their solution? A digital B2B platform that connects farmers directly to processors (who turn crops into market-ready products like flour) and wholesalers.
Poshn’s business model is brilliantly simple yet disruptive. Unlike traditional platforms, it operates without warehouses, reducing overhead costs. Orders are placed via a smartphone app, and Poshn handles everything from sourcing to logistics and payments, all trackable in real-time. This eliminates middlemen, ensuring farmers get better prices and buyers access quality products at lower costs. Focusing on groceries (rice, flour, edible oils) and liquid products (like milk), Poshn serves markets in Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and Bangalore. Starting with just 2–3 processors and wholesalers, it now supports over 700, fostering trust through transparent pricing and quality checks.
The duo’s journey wasn’t easy. With an initial ₹1 crore investment, they bootstrapped operations, handling everything themselves before building a 70-member team. Their first six months saw ₹80 lakh in turnover, soaring to nearly ₹100 crore by the end of year one. By 2023–24, Poshn’s GMV hit ₹510 crore, a testament to their vision and execution. A 2022 seed funding round of ₹28.8 crore from Prime Venture Partners and Zephyr Peacock fueled their growth, enabling tech and team expansion.
What makes this agritech success story stand out is its impact on small and medium businesses. Processors and distributors often struggle with working capital due to slow trade cycles. Poshn addresses this by ensuring prompt payments upon delivery, stabilizing their finances. As Shashank explained, “We’re making wholesale trade efficient and seamless.” Their platform’s no-inventory model and app-based transparency have redefined agricultural trade, offering a scalable solution for India’s fragmented supply chain.
This agritech success story also reflects the broader potential of digital platforms in agriculture. Studies show that e-commerce can reduce transaction costs and boost farm performance by connecting farmers to markets directly. Poshn’s model aligns with this, empowering smallholder farmers who dominate India’s agricultural sector. With plans to expand nationwide, Shashank and Bhuvnesh aim to make Poshn a cornerstone of India’s agritech revolution.
For aspiring entrepreneurs, Poshn’s story is a lesson in resilience and innovation. From quitting corporate jobs to building a ₹510 crore empire, Shashank and Bhuvnesh prove that understanding real-world problems and leveraging technology can create transformative change. Their advice? Stay focused, solve real problems, and embrace adaptability. This agritech success story is just the beginning for Poshn and India’s farmers.