Bain bets on Indian domestic work startup Pronto even as rivals face criticism

Summary

Urban India is becoming increasingly used to not having to wait — at least when it comes to getting goods and services delivered. You only need to look at the breakneck pace at which instant delivery apps like Blinkit, Zepto, and Swiggy Instamart have grown and continue to see adoption soar in the country. Pronto, one such startup that lets users book and avail cleaning, laundry, and home services within 10 minutes, is capitalizing on that change in consumer behavior, and it’s now come out of stealth with a $2 million seed round led by Bain Capital Ventures at a post-money valuation of $12.5 million. Investors are likely stoked to invest in such startups given their potential for growth, but Pronto’s funding is coming at a time when people are increasingly sensitive to how gig workers are treated by platforms. Just two months ago, another venture-backed home services provider Urban Company faced intense public backlash for launching a similar service. Called Insta Maids, the 15-minute home cleaning service quickly sparked an uproar on social media, mainly for the language Urban Company used in its promotional campaign. The company later renamed the service to Insta Help, but many, including gig worker unions, didn’t seem satisfied with just a rebranding. For its part, Pronto offers cleaning, laundry, and cooking prep services with three different timing options: instant (10 minutes), scheduled, and recurring. Services are offered 24/7, and the startup guarantees 10-minute service access in all supported areas. The company claims more than 1,000 customers in the North Indian city of Gurugram. Pronto’s founder and CEO, Anjali Sardana, says her company aims to address gig workers’ concerns with an approach that is “win, win, win business” for all stakeholders. “What’s missing from a lot of the language around these services is that they treat workers like commodities. They treat them as inputs. That’s not the way we operate,” she told TechCrunch. “We sit at the same hu...