Quikr reportedly in talks to acquire Babajob

Quikr reportedly is in advanced talks to acquire blue-collar jobs portal, Babajob. Citing sources, an Economic Times report said that the acquisition will help Quikr to strengthen its position in the Indian blue-collar job market.

Babajob’s popularity in smaller towns will apparently help the online classifieds portal to cater to these markets. According to the sources, some of the employees at Babajob are already aware of the acquisition and an official announcement cold soon follow.

Bangalore-based Babajob is a digital job marketplace that connects skilled, aspiring workers such as drivers, delivery executives, nurses, beauticians, entry-level sales and BPO executives to potential employers. The portal claims to have a base of seven million job seekers and 4,50,000 employers. The service is currently available in over 20 cities including Coimbatore, Bhopal, Indore, besides Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi.

The sale is reportedly on account of the company having failed to find a new investor. Founded in 2012, the startup raised a seed funding round of Rs 3.5 crore from Gray Ghost Ventures and Khosla Impact. In April 2016, it raised $10 million in a round of funding led by Australian-based online employment marketplace Seek.

However, over the last one year, the startup has been on a cost-cutting drive trimming to about 50 people from a peak strength of about 600 employees.