On the latest round of Manthan funding.
On investment.
Q: Which round of funding is this for Manthan and who led the round?
This was a Series C funding of $15 million. The round was led by Norwest Venture Partners (NVP).
Q: What is the intended purpose of this round of funding? How will this be used?
This round of financing will be used to:
Increase our sales and distribution reach
Accelerate our product roadmap (launching products in adjacencies and leveraging the SaaS model)
Increase our competitive lead (in our effort to be the leader in retail analytics space)
Q: When did the funding officially close?
Last week of January 2012.
Q: Are you planning to raise another round in the future? How long will this funding last?
We are pleased with the amount we have raised for our growth requirements at this point in time. We will
evaluate the need for another round when the time is right.
Q: What is the valuation placed on Manthan by the amount raised?
We are unable to discuss valuation at this point in time.
Q: How much was previously invested in the company? How much total funding has been raised till date?
$35 million previously. The total is now $50 million.
Q: If there were previous investors, did all previous investors participate in this round of funding as well?
Not in this round.
Q: Is the company majority-owned by VCs?
No. We are not disclosing details of ownership.
On the Board and management.
Q: Were there any changes to the board based on this round?
Mr. Mohan Kumar, Executive Director, NVP India will be joining Manthan’s Board as a result of this funding.
On business/technology
Q: Describe Manthan
Manthan Systems produces cutting edge analytic solutions for global retail and CPG organizations. Manthan's
award winning products address the analytical needs of a wide range of retail segments and formats, and is today
transforming decision-making for some of the biggest names in global retail.
Q: Tell me about your products/services.
Under the brand name of ARC, Manthan offers software products for analytics, business intelligence, data mining
and supplier collaboration. For more information about Manthan’s solutions, please visit manthansystems.com
Q: How did Manthan get started?
Manthan was started by CEO and founder Mr. Atul Jalan, with a vision to provide world-class business solutions for
enabling advanced decision-making in the retail and consumer goods industry. 8 years ago, he foresaw a radical
shift in the computing paradigm where technology’s core value in business moved from automation of business
processes to optimization of business processes. And where business intelligence and analytics played a leading
role in driving business optimization and decision automation. Today, Manthan is credited with several recognitions
(http://www.manthansystems.com/en/about-us/awards-a-benchmarks) from the industry for setting the bar for the
evolution in decision-making technologies.
Q: How many employees do you have now?
We are not disclosing this information.
Q: Who is Manthan’s target market?
Manthan targets retail and consumer goods organizations worldwide. Manthan markets its solutions to all
segments of the market, including food & grocery stores, department stores, mass merchandise stores
apparel/fashion chains, furniture retail, hardware/DIY, convenience stores, electronics/gaming, books/music/video
and various other specialty retail segments.
Manthan has deployed its solutions to over a 70 customers across 20 countries in the world. They offer analytics
solutions to most of the major retail markets worldwide including the North America, Western Europe and Nordics,
Eastern Europe, Latin America, South East Asia, Australia and New Zealand. Manthan targets these markets
through a combination of its own offices and its channel partners.
On the latest round of Manthan funding 1/2
On the latest round of Manthan funding.
Q: What is the size of the market you are targeting?
According to IDC, the market for business analytics is forecasted at $ 33.9 billion in 2012.
(http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20120117005096/en/IDC-Launches-Worldwide-Business-Analytics-S
oftware-Tracker)
Q: What problems does Manthan solve?
Businesses today lack analytics and business intelligence solutions that deeply understand their business and
therefore provide better, faster, superior decision making capability. The business intelligence market is dominated
by providers with little or no industry focus. As a consequence, decision making for many businesses is not data
driven, remains a gut-feel process, and delivers sub-optimal results.
Manthan realized the gap in the market for industry solutions that understand the people (decision makers), their
business processes and practices, and their very specific decision making needs. And therefore produced cutting
edge business solution to fulfill the true promise of analytics and business intelligence. For over 70 customers
worldwide, analytics and business intelligence is a game changing competitive advantage, not just a reporting tool.
Manthan competes on its unmatched combination of deep industry specialization and cutting edge analytic
technology & business applications, as well as its ability to drive significant business results for its customers.
Q: Is Manthan profitable and if not, when will it be profitable?
We are a private company and we are not discussing revenue numbers or profitability at this point.
Q: What is Manthan's burn rate?
We are a profitable company. We are not disclosing details at this point.
Q: What’s the company’s revenue position now?
We are a private company and we are not discussing revenue numbers at this point.
Q: What are your revenue projections for 2012?
We are not disclosing revenue numbers at this point.
Q: What are the areas of growth for Manthan?
Manthan aims to drive both organic growth, through newer products in its portfolio, targeting the SaaS (Software
as a Service) market for its solutions, and expanding/strengthening its presence and success in existing and newer
markets. Manthan is evaluating its options to grow inorganically by expanding its technology footprint as well its
market reach though acquisitions.
Q: What are Manthan’s expansion plans in the near future? Will you be adding people to your team?
Manthan will continue to expand in areas where it has identified growth opportunities. We are not providing specific
information on figures at this point.
Q: Does the company intend to go public?
When the time is right and the market ready, we will of course consider this option.
On competition
Q: Tell us about the competitive landscape. Are there other companies (larger companies and/or start-ups) doing
what Manthan is doing?
We do not have a like-for-like direct competition that offers a strong industry solution for business analytics in retail.
Manthan indirectly competes with other providers of business analytics applications, business intelligence
platforms as well as custom-build software services.
Q: Who are your competitors and why is Manthan better?
Manthan’s analytics products are highly differentiated in their comprehensiveness and depth of industry
specialization in retail. Being an early and leading player in the retail space, we stay ahead of competition through
our technology innovation, industry expertise and customer satisfaction (making sure we deliver outstanding results
for our customers).
On the latest round of Manthan funding 2/2