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    Crossroads acquires MeriCAR.com to scale up garage network

    Synopsis

    Post acquisition, Crossroads will surpass 1,000 branded garages across the country. It aims to grow this number to over 5,000 in the next two years.

    PTI
    NEW DELHI: Roadside assistance services firm Crossroads India has acquired the country's first online car garage aggregator MeriCAR.com to expand its network across the country.
    Post acquisition, Crossroads will surpass 1,000 branded garages across the country. It aims to grow this number to over 5,000 in the next two years.

    "This acquisition would help us build a branded garages network across India using MeriCAR's existing network infrastructure," Crossroads Chief Operating Officer, Puneet Sharma told PTI.

    With MeriCAR team on board, the company would be able to hasten its garage aggregation process, which is seen as a key growth driver going forward, he added.

    He, however, did not disclose the financial details.

    As part of the deal, MeriCAR.com founder Rakesh Sidana will be joining Crossroads and will head a newly-created vertical - point of sales and services (POSS) network.

    Established in 2008 as listing model, MeriCAR created a unique value proposition for helping car owners for repairing and car servicing.

    Early last year, Crossroads initiated a high-speed growth plan working on a 360-degree approach and is now looking at a four-fold growth by 2016-17.

    It is expanding its reach across the country by offering services through its digital platform, apart from its traditional road-side assistance (RSA) brick-and-mortar model.

    "Currently, we have 500-plus employees along with affiliated 30,000-partner network and our target is to reach the 1,500-plus employees with the 50,000-partner network mark by 2017," Sharma said.

    The company has recently expanded its retail sales teams to energise operations in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, West Bengal, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Odisha and Rajasthan.

    The city-based firm started operations 16 years ago in 1999 and today has B2C operations in 12 cities and network presence in 30 cities across the country.
    The Economic Times

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