Bangalore : When you imagine long haul goods transport trucks and truckers, IT and ITES is the last thing that comes to mind. But a closer look inside the working of a modern-day trucking business firm reveals the extent to which technology plays a role – from picking up consignments, sorting, delivery, tracking the progress and calculating an assortment of logistical requirements.

It is in a mid-sized logistics firm that you can see rustic truckers rubbing shoulders with computer geeks, who are constantly researching and writing codes so that the entire operation is smooth and error free. And on time.

Punctuality is one of the key elements that wins the trust of customers for Spoton Logistics, a Bangalore-based transporting firm that moves material within India, along with quality of service. It is to enhance these elements that Spoton Logistics has embraced technology in a big way.

Spoton Logistics fulfils express logistics, business to business, serving clients across Hi-Tech, Automotive, Engineering, Pharmaceutical, Electronics, Electrical, Lifestyle and Retail industry segments aided by technology engineered, data led network.

Easily the fastest growing pan-India logistics company with an annualized revenue run rate in excess of Rs 600 crore has only recently partnered with a consortium of investors led by Samara Capital and Xponentia Fund Partners.

The new infusion of funds will help the logistics company to carry out the next stage of its growth.

“We are delighted to have the new investor group on board in the next phase of our journey towards excellence and leadership,” said Abhik Mitra, MD and CEO, Spoton Logistics. In an exclusive interview with Covai Post he said, “their support for strong management teams to run the company, whilst playing a key role as a value-added partner focused on business strategy, internal controls, governance, financial management, and identifying and supporting growth opportunities, through business alliances and or M&A, will bring rich rewards to all. The existing Spoton leadership team will continue to drive and execute the next phase of Spoton’s growth strategy, working closely with the Samara and Xponentia Teams.”

The objective is to reach the top and become the biggest in the business, he said, but he was a tad realistic that it would take some time to get there. But among the mid-sized companies, we are the best, Abhik Mitra said.

Spoton will continue to grow aggressively in the road express business and will remain the fastest growing player in this segment. Additional service offerings such as air express cargo, 3rd party logistics (3PL) and speed trucking are also on the cards and detailed plans are being drawn up along with the Samara team. Domestic air express will be the first new product to be launched and this should be completed by Q4 FY19.

Aided by the new investor group’s global network, Spoton also plans to explore business alliances with leading global logistics players to boost revenue and growth opportunities for the company.

Spoton was set up in Jan 2012, when PE firm India Equity Partners acquired the road express business of multinational company TNT. Since then, under CEO Abhik Mitra’s leadership, it has established a national network and grown to be recognized as a leading technology-led express logistics provider to over 4000 corporate and SME customers across industries.

“The Spoton Leadership team has done a fantastic job in building a defensible and profitable proposition in the opportunity rich logistics sector, which is seeing and will continue to see the tailwinds due to GST, e-way bill and other initiatives. Spoton’s success has been driven by strong corporate governance, an outstanding management team, supported by a Pan India network covering 20000 plus pin codes which is driven by global quality network engineering, led by technology and analytics. We look forward to partnering with them for an equally exciting second innings,” said Abhishek Kabra, Director of Samara Capital.

An entrepreneurially run private equity firm, Samara focuses on mid-market buyouts across sectors, in partnership with best-in-class management teams.

“We are excited to be part of Spoton’s journey to becoming a leading logistics company in India. Abhik is leading an entrepreneurial management team that has leveraged technology to build scale and provide great customer service. As the introduction of GST transforms the logistics industry in India, working with Samara and the management team, we see exciting possibilities to build SpotOn into a great company”, said Devinjit Singh, Managing Partner at Xponentia.

Xponentia is an India focused mid-market private equity firm that provides entrepreneurial management teams with capital & capabilities to build valuable businesses.

Samara and Xponentia’s partnership with Spoton is a win-win for all stakeholders for the company. Spoton’s customers will benefit, as Spoton aggressively continues to expand its network, add new products and continue to deliver operational and service delivery excellence. New career and growth opportunities abound for employees and business partners whilst creating a perfect opportunity for Samara to build an excellent logistics platform delivering scale, growth and high profitability.