When consumers buy products online, it means they are also inclined to the idea of buying goods online for their businesses. This made Brijesh Agrawal start Tolexo, a business-to-business (B2B) online marketplace.

“Between 2012 and 2013, as we interacted with businesses, we saw a clear trend that they were getting more inclined to the idea of buying business goods online,” he said.

“The increasing penetration of consumer goods ecommerce and availability of multiple customer-friendly payment options had improved the trust of consumers in online buying, and it was becoming clear that anyone who bought products online as a consumer was more and more inclined to the idea of buying goods online for their business too,” he added.

More than 2.5 lakh businesses, from over 900 cities, have transacted on Tolexo’s platform.

“With our 2X growth plan, we are planning to reach out to approximately 2,000 cities in the next two years time,” said Agrawal.

Tolexo wants to serve 10 lakh businesses in the next 2-3 years. Its products include office supplies and industrial goods, among others.

When asked about products, Agrawal said, “Currently, Tolexo carries an assortment of over 10 lakh products, from 8,000 brands, spread over 28 categories. Our focus has been to serve business customers by helping them buy and sell business goods and supplies. We have a very strong value proposition to offer to small and mid-size businesses, especially from tier II, III and IV cities across India.”

The founder of Tolexo said that the B2B ecommerce market in India has begun to see a lot of action, but only of late. “A lot of companies that compete with us are essentially startups like Industrybuying and Moglix. Looking at the future business prospects, which is estimated to be $700 billion by 2020, India is soon going to be a hot battleground for other international big players,” he added.