Hesa
Hesa is a Hyderabad-based RuralTech platform operating a phygital (physical + digital) commerce network, using village-level entrepreneurs (Hesaathis) to deliver banking, insurance, agri-input, FMCG, and brand-promotion services to rural consumers across 100,000+ Indian villages.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2019
- HeadquartersSecunderabad, India
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What Hesa does
Hesa (HESA Enterprises Private Limited) is a Hyderabad-based RuralTech platform that connects brands, financial institutions, and agricultural businesses with India's rural population through a phygital (physical + digital) model combining a mobile-first unified commerce platform with an on-ground network of village-level entrepreneurs called Hesaathis. The platform supports multiple user types (Village Level Entrepreneurs, agents, customers, suppliers, vendors, employees, admins) through a single login, with offline-first capability, local language support, PAN/Aadhaar-based KYC compliance, NEFT banking integration, and API access to 1,500+ products and services SKUs. Hesaathis — sourced from kirana shop owners, progressive farmers, women self-help groups, youth, and other local entrepreneurs — use the Hesa app to facilitate buying, selling, banking transactions, insurance distribution, and brand promotions, targeting approximately INR 10,000 per month in transaction margins.
Hesa monetizes primarily through transaction fees across four streams: buy/sell of goods (groceries, personal care, agri produce, FMCG), financial services commissions from partners including Airtel Payments Bank, GramCover, HDFC Life, Reliance General Insurance, and Stree Nidhi, brand campaign and promotional services for FMCG and agri clients, and agri input/output trading with partners such as Big Haat, Dodla Dairy, Reshamandi, and WayCool. The company serves four primary B2B segments (Banking/Finance/Insurance, Agro-based businesses, Consumer Brands/FMCG, and NGOs/CSR) plus a B2C rural consumer base reported at 600,000+ customers (2021) with stated village reach of 100,000+ by 2024. The company was originally founded in 2019 (with CIN incorporation dating to 2012), is headquartered in Secunderabad/Hyderabad, has a subsidiary HESA Technologies Private Limited holding certain applications, and has acquired two companies — GullyBuy (April 2022) and Flinkhub (July 2022) — while launching its own consumer brand Suhas (kitchen essentials) in April 2022.
The company's reported FY2024 revenue figure of ₹1,717 Crores on its About page is materially inconsistent with its funding base (~$4.85M total raised), headcount (11-50 employees), and prior disclosure of $4M gross revenue at the 2021 seed stage, and should be treated as likely gross merchandise value or transaction throughput rather than recognized net revenue until independently audited.
Hesa firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Hesa
- Legal name
- HESA Enterprises Private Limited
- Website
- https://hesa.co
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2019
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Hesa is a Hyderabad-based RuralTech platform operating a phygital (physical + digital) commerce network, using village-level entrepreneurs (Hesaathis) to deliver banking, insurance, agri-input, FMCG, and brand-promotion services to rural consumers across 100,000+ Indian villages.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Hesa industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Rural Commerce and Distribution Platform
- NAICS
- Support Activities for Crop Production (11511)
- SIC
- Wholesale-Farm Product Raw Materials (5150)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Agriculture Inputs & Farm Supply Marketplaces (CRAFAHAL)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- E-commerce & Online Business (Marketplaces, DTC) (EDAMAHAH)
Keywords
Where Hesa is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Secunderabad
- HQ country
- India
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices2 records
Markets served
Hesa business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Transaction Fees — Buy and Sell: Hesa facilitates buying and selling of goods (groceries, personal care items, agri produce, FMCG) between rural consumers and vendors through the Hesaathi network, earning transaction fees or margins on each completed trade.
- Financial Services Commission: Commissions earned from facilitating banking transactions, insurance distribution, bill payments, and microfinance collections through the Hesaathi network. Partnerships with Airtel Payments Bank, GramCover, HDFC Life, Reliance General Insurance, and Stree Nidhi generate recurring transaction-based revenue.
- Brand Campaigns and Promotions: Revenue from conducting brand awareness campaigns, product promotions, consumer surveys, and village-level mapping for FMCG brands and agricultural businesses seeking to reach rural consumers through the Hesaathi network.
- Hesaathi Earning (Transaction Margin Model): Hesaathis earn INR 10,000 per month in transactional margins from buy, sell, and brand promotion activities. Hesa monetizes through the spread and transaction fees embedded in the overall commerce ecosystem rather than directly charging Hesaathis.
- Agricultural Input and Output Trading: Revenue generated from connecting farmers with agri marketplaces (e.g., Big Haat, Reshamandi) and facilitating procurement and sale of agricultural inputs and outputs through the Hesaathi network.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Hesaathi Transaction Margin |
| Other | Monthly | Associate Business Executives Compensation |
| Other | Annual | State Heads Compensation |
| Other | Annual | Regional Business Managers Compensation |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
Hesa product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Hesa operates a phygital (physical + digital) rural commerce platform that connects enterprises with 850 million rural consumers in India through a network of village-level entrepreneurs called Hesaathis. The company facilitates rural buy/sell transactions, banking and insurance distribution, microfinance collection, bill payments, agricultural input and output trading, and brand awareness campaigns. Revenue is generated via transaction fees, commissions on financial services, and margins on commerce activities, with the Hesaathi network serving as the last-mile physical touchpoint and the Hesa mobile platform serving as the digital backbone.
Product overview
Hesa operates as a unified RuralTech platform combining AgriTech and FinTech verticals through a 'phygital' (physical + digital) model. The core offering consists of the Hesa App (mobile-first commerce platform), HESA FinTech App (financial services), HESA Ubuntu Gully Buy ('click pe kirana' service), and the Hesaathi Network (village-level entrepreneurs). The platform was enhanced through acquisitions of GullyBuy (2022) and Flinkhub (2022), and expanded into consumer products via the Suhas brand (2022). The platform enables brands to reach, demonstrate, transact with, and engage rural consumers through a three-tiered social, digital, and physical approach, powered by Hesaathis distributed across villages.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Hesa App Mobile-first unified commerce platform enabling transactions, promotions, and reach-outs by the on-ground Hesaathi workforce to rural consumers across India. Supports single login for Hesaathis, agents, customers, suppliers, vendors, employees, and admins; offline-first with local language support; integrates with PAN/Aadhaar KYC and NEFT banking.
- HESA FinTech App Proprietary fintech application enabling financial services distribution in rural areas, including banking transactions, digital disbursements, cash collection via wallet, microfinance collections, and insurance distribution through the Hesaathi network.
- HESA Ubuntu Gully Buy Application providing 'click pe kirana' service that facilitates the buying and selling of various goods (groceries, personal care items, FMCG) by connecting vendors with buyers through the Hesaathi network in rural areas.
- Hesaathi Network Network of village-level entrepreneurs (Hesaathis) who serve as tech-savvy consultants using Hesa's digital platform to provide doorstep access to products, financial transactions, and bill payments for brands and consumers in remote locations.
- Suhas Hesa's own consumer brand offering healthy kitchen essentials including Pulses, Ground Spices, and Readymade Masalas, distributed to rural consumers through Hesaathis and retail stores.
- GullyBuy (Acquired Platform) Digital market tech platform wholly owned by Hesa following April 2022 acquisition; provides last-mile rural marketplace services for buying and selling in rural markets and is integrated into the Hesa ecosystem as HESA Gully Buy.
- Flinkhub (Acquired Platform) Social learning experiences platform for creators, wholly owned by Hesa following July 2022 acquisition; utilized for training village entrepreneurs (Hesaathis) and facilitating community building in rural markets.
Quantifiable outcome
- Hesaathi's wallet enables SHG members to payback microfinance instantly instead of waiting 14 days
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Hesa
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Hesa technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature6 records
Hesa partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
31 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- OxecartminorHesa partnered with Oxecart to provide better market linkages for farmers, integrating Oxecart's marketplace capabilities with Hesa's last-mile rural distribution network.
- FlinkhubcoreHesa acquired Bengaluru-based Flinkhub, a social learning experiences platform for creators, to enhance its super app strategy and product growth. The acquisition utilized Flinkhub's products to train village entrepreneurs and facilitate community building, extending Hesa's reach in rural markets.
- GullyBuycoreHesa acquired GullyBuy, a digital market tech platform, to enhance its digital commerce capabilities for rural markets. The acquisition strengthened Hesa's technology stack for B2B2C rural commerce.
- Suhas (Own Consumer Brand)minorHesa launched Suhas, a consumer brand offering healthy kitchen essentials (pulses, ground spices, readymade masalas) targeting rural consumers through Hesaathis and retail stores.
- Airtel Payments BankcorePartnership bringing seamless banking experience to thousands of rural customers across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana through the Hesaathi network. Hesaathis facilitate banking transactions and bill payments for rural consumers.
- GramCovercoreHesaathis powered by GramCover's InsureTech platform assist in de-risking rural India by enabling insurance distribution in villages. Dhyanesh Bhatt, Group CEO of GramCover, confirmed the partnership to bring insurance access to rural India.
- Stree Nidhi (Govt of Telangana)coreHesaathis collect cash repayments from 1.1 million women members of self-help groups via Hesaathi wallet, replacing manual collections and physical deposits. SHG members can payback instantly instead of the previous 14-day cycle without leaving their village.
- Dodla DairycoreHesa enabled manual-to-digital disbursements for 0.3 million dairy farmers supplying milk to Dodla Dairy. Dairy farmers now receive reimbursements in 2 days instead of the previous 21-day cycle.
- Big HaatcoreHesaathi's go-to-market handling for Big Haat (agri marketplace for farmers) helps 2 million farmers buy agri inputs online. Reduced travel time and wait-time increased online transactions for Big Haat.
- KrishitantraminorPartnership spread across 500 locations enabling 50,000 farmers to access soil testing services through Hesaathis, improving agricultural productivity for rural communities.
- ReshamandiminorHesa serves as the last-mile rural connector for Reshamandi's sericulture farmers in Andhra Pradesh, facilitating silk value chain access.
- Husqvarna GroupminorThrough the Hesaathi network, Hesa creates awareness about innovative Agri-based tools and techniques by connecting the farming community with Husqvarna Group's farming equipment division.
- Amazon EasyminorPartnership enabling Amazon Easy services through Hesaathis in rural areas, allowing rural consumers to access Amazon's e-commerce offerings.
- Reliance General InsuranceminorInsurance products distributed through the Hesaathi network to rural consumers across Hesa's operating regions.
- HDFC LifeminorLife insurance distribution through Hesaathis, enabling rural access to financial protection products.
- WayCoolminorPartnership for agri produce distribution and supply chain connectivity, with WayCool leveraging Hesaathis for last-mile reach.
- SamunnatiminorPartnership with India's largest agri-tech enterprise for open agri-network access, unlocking potential for smallholder farmers through Hesaathis.
- FasalminorAgricultural technology partnership enabling precision farming solutions through Hesaathis for farmers in Hesa's network.
- Agri10XminorMulti-exchange agri trading platform partnership to connect farmers with better market prices through Hesa's last-mile network.
- Jai KisanminorRural fintech partnership providing agricultural financing solutions to farmers through the Hesaathi network.
- GreenLight Planet (Sun King)minorDistribution of solar lighting and energy products through Hesaathis to rural households.
- AgrixminorAgritech partnership for enhanced agricultural solutions delivered through the Hesaathi network.
- Digit (Insurance)minorInsurance distribution partnership enabling Digit General Insurance products to reach rural consumers through Hesaathis.
- Mahindra & MahindraminorRural market penetration partnership for Mahindra's agricultural and rural-focused products through Hesa's village network.
- HimalayaminorDistribution of Himalaya herbal and wellness products to rural consumers through Hesaathis.
- P&G (Procter & Gamble)coreLarge FMCG brand partnership for distribution of P&G consumer products to rural markets through the Hesaathi network.
- Wipro Consumer CareminorDistribution of Wipro consumer care products to rural markets via Hesaathis.
- CromptonminorDistribution of Crompton electrical and consumer appliances through the rural Hesaathi network.
- TTK PrestigeminorKitchen appliances and cookware distribution to rural consumers through Hesaathis.
- ReadyAssistminorBreakdown assistance and roadside services distributed through the Hesaathi network in rural areas.
- Pee SafeminorPersonal hygiene and wellness products distributed to rural consumers through the Hesa network.
Scale indicators13 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Hesa competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- AgroStar: Agri-inputs marketplace and advisory platform serving Indian farmers via a tech-enabled distribution network. Direct competitor in the agri-inputs marketplace vertical that Hesa supports through the Big Haat partnership.
- PayNearby: Operates a network of retail-enabled agents for digital financial services (AEPS, money transfer, bill payments, banking) across semi-urban and rural India. Closest direct peer in the agent-based fintech distribution model that Hesa's Hesaathi network parallels.
- WayCool Foods: Full-stack agri-commerce platform with deep farmer sourcing and distribution operations across South India. Hesa is a listed partner; comparable in operating model (phygital agri distribution) and overlapping customer set (rural farmers).
- BigHaat: Agri-inputs e-commerce platform serving Indian farmers with seeds, crop protection, and nutrition products. Listed as a Hesa distribution partner, but operates its own farmer-facing brand and is a direct competitor in the same agri-inputs marketplace category.
- DeHaat: Full-stack agri-fintech platform offering inputs, advisory, market linkage, and financial services to Indian farmers. Directly comparable to Hesa in combining rural fintech distribution with agri commerce, though DeHaat is more farmer-inputs focused and Hesa is more VLE/distribution focused.
- Spice Money: Aditya Birla Nuvo-backed fintech distribution network of rural nano-ATM and BC agents offering banking, payments, insurance, and financial services. Same business model as Hesaathis in delivering BFSI products at the village level.
- Ninjacart: Tech-driven agri supply-chain platform connecting farmers with retailers, restaurants and processors. Comparable to Hesa's agri-output trading stream (Big Haat, WayCool, Agri10X partnerships) though focused more on supply chain than last-mile.
Emerging players
- Samunnati: India's largest agri-finance and open agri-network player providing working capital, market linkage, and capacity building across the agri value chain. Listed Hesa partner but also operates competing farmer-engagement infrastructure in overlapping geographies.
Broad incumbents
- ITC e-Choupal: Long-established (since 2000) rural agri-distribution platform operated by ITC, reaching 4M+ farmers via physical e-Choupal kiosks. Most established broad incumbent in rural agri distribution; Hesa is effectively a tech-enabled next-generation version of this model.
- Reliance JioKrishi / JioMart: Reliance's rural commerce and agri services initiatives leverage the Jio retail and digital infrastructure. With massive capital and existing brand trust in rural India, Reliance is the most consequential broad incumbent threat to Hesa's distribution position.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Hesa financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Hesa leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles17 records
Hesa subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries3 records
Hesa funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds6 records
Investors18 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Hesa M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Hesa
What does Hesa do?
Hesa operates a phygital (physical + digital) rural commerce platform that connects enterprises with 850 million rural consumers in India through a network of village-level entrepreneurs called Hesaathis. The company facilitates rural buy/sell transactions, banking and insurance distribution, microfinance collection, bill payments, agricultural input and output trading, and brand awareness campaigns. Revenue is generated via transaction fees, commissions on financial services, and margins on commerce activities, with the Hesaathi network serving as the last-mile physical touchpoint and the Hesa mobile platform serving as the digital backbone.
Is Hesa a public or private company?
Hesa is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed.
When was Hesa founded?
Hesa was founded in 2019. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Hesa based?
Hesa is headquartered in Secunderabad, India, in the Asia region.
How does Hesa make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Transaction Fees — Buy and Sell is the primary driver. The others are financial Services Commission, brand Campaigns and Promotions, hesaathi Earning (Transaction Margin Model) and agricultural Input and Output Trading.
Who are Hesa's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are AgroStar, PayNearby, WayCool Foods, BigHaat, DeHaat, Spice Money and Ninjacart. Samunnati is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are ITC e-Choupal and Reliance JioKrishi / JioMart.
Does Hesa have an API?
No public API is recorded for Hesa.
What industry is Hesa in?
Hesa's product category is Rural Commerce and Distribution Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRAFAHAL, Agriculture Inputs & Farm Supply Marketplaces, with a secondary code of EDAMAHAH, E-commerce & Online Business (Marketplaces, DTC). Its NAICS code is 11511 and its SIC code is 5150.