India is growing every single day in terms of population, opportunities, economy, and even employment opportunities. Though there is a rise in these segments, there is still a huge unemployment left. Well, if we dig deeper, it is not because there are no opportunities but because there is no right platform to connect the demand and supply. Meaning, companies across industries have multiple vacancies not just in top-level management but across every layer of the organization. Factories need machine operators, hospitals need assistants, retail chains need salespeople, and restaurants need staff. Yet employers complain about not finding the right fit, while workers endlessly struggle to land meaningful opportunities. The disconnect is not in demand or supply; it’s in connection itself. And that’s where one Indian startup saw the gap and, in just a few years, built one of the fastest-growing professional networks in the world. That startup is Apna.
India’s workforce is huge, with more than 500 million people. Out of this, nearly 250 million are in blue- and grey-collar jobs. These include electricians, delivery boys, carpenters, sales staff, teachers, beauticians, and many others who actually keep the country running every single day. But when it comes to finding jobs, this group faces many problems: Unlike engineers or office workers who can use platforms like LinkedIn or Naukri, most workers here depend on word-of-mouth, contractors, or local newspaper ads. Then comes the second problem which is employers don’t know if candidates are genuine, and workers often get cheated by middlemen who take commissions. Most job platforms use English, while the majority of these workers prefer their local language. And lastly, many don’t have resumes or networks to show their skills and experience. This created a big gap. On one side, workers wanted steady and respectful jobs. On the other side, companies wanted reliable, skilled people. But there was no strong bridge to connect the two. So, if you understand the problem, you can realize how big the problem is.
That’s how the problem gave a great push to Apna. Apna was founded in 2019 by Nirmit Parikh, a Stanford alumnus and former Apple engineer. He is joined by a strong leadership team that brings expertise across technology, product, and business scaling. Together, the team combines global experience with a sharp understanding of India’s unique workforce challenges, which has helped Apna grow at an exceptional pace. Apna succeeded because it focused on the right people and solved their problems in the simplest way possible. While most platforms catered to office jobs and white-collar professionals, Apna went straight to the workers who were usually ignored. The app was easy to use, worked in local languages, and was light enough for anyone with a basic smartphone. More importantly, it offered more than just job listings; it gave workers a place to connect with others in their field, ask questions, and build a community.
Trust was another big factor; by cutting out middlemen and verifying profiles, Apna made both workers and employers feel safe. Usually, middlemen try to exploit the hard-earned money of workers. But with the help of this platform, they eliminated that struggle. This trust and usefulness made people talk about it, and word of mouth spread the app faster than any marketing campaign. The timing also helped; during COVID, when millions lost jobs, Apna became a lifeline. And with a strong team and support from big investors, it had the money and strength to expand quickly across cities.
A big reason behind Apna’s rapid growth has been the trust it earned not just from workers and companies, but also from some of the world’s top investors. In just a short time, Apna managed to raise large rounds of funding from big names like Tiger Global, Sequoia Capital India, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Insight Partners, Owl Ventures, and Maverick Ventures. In September 2021, Apna raised $100 million in a Series C round led by Tiger Global, which instantly pushed its valuation to $1.1 billion, making it one of the fastest Indian startups to reach unicorn status. This all happened in just two years of its operations.
Then, to get a clear picture of the company, let’s dive into the financials of the company. In FY24, Apna reported operating revenue of about ₹127.6 crore, down from ₹180.3 crore in FY23, but what stood out was its sharp cost control. The company cut overall expenses from ₹308.4 crore to around ₹191 crore, which helped halve its net loss to ₹51.3 crore from over ₹120 crore the previous year. FY25 results are not released yet. Let’s see how this platform builds a strong business in the coming years.
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