MS Dhoni Ventures Into The World Of Drones — Here’s The Other Companies He Invested In

MS Dhoni Ventures Into The World Of Drones — Here’s The Other Companies He Invested In

Former Indian team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni appears to have transformed into a full-time startup investor after retiring from international cricket. He now owns stakes in enterprises in many industries, including car, liquor, agriculture, and textiles.

His most recent endeavour is in the field of drones, where he spent an unknown sum in Garuda Aerospace, a drone firm based in Chennai. He’s become the company’s brand ambassador.

The company works in the agricultural industry and operates in 26 countries with 300 drones and 500 pilots.

One of India’s highest-paid athletes

Dhoni’s net worth is projected to be $111 million, and he was one of the highest-paid athletes in the world in 2015, earning up to $31 million. Dhoni endorses 20 brands, including TVS Motors, Ashok Leyland, and Exide Batteries, in addition to investments.

As a result, it’s no surprise that he’s meticulously building his fortune by investing in businesses, the majority of which are startups.

About Mahendra Singh Dhoni 

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, born on July 7, 1981, is an Indian cricketer who captained the Indian national team in limited-overs formats from 2007 to 2017 and Test cricket from 2008 to 2014. He is a wicket-keeper batsman who bats right-handed. He was the side captain that won three ICC trophies: the 2007 ICC World Twenty20, the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup, and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy. India won the Asia Cup twice under his guidance, in 2010 and 2016. India won the ICC Test Championship Mace twice under his captaincy in 2010 and 2011. He is one of history’s finest captains and Wicket Keeper-Batsmen. Dhoni has received many honours during his 15-year international career.

He was a member of the Bihar and Jharkhand cricket teams in Indian domestic cricket. In the IPL, he is the captain of Chennai Super Kings (CSK). He captained the team to championships in the IPL leagues of 2010, 2011, 2018, and 2021. Chennai Super Kings (CSK) won the Champions League T20 twice under his captaincy in 2010 and 2014. On March 24, 2022, he stepped down as captain and was replaced by Ravindra Jadeja. On April 30, 2022, he reclaimed the captaincy.

Dhoni made his ODI debut against Bangladesh in Chittagong on December 23, 2004, and his Test debut against Sri Lanka a year later. A year later, he played his maiden Twenty20 International against South Africa. He took over as ODI captain from Rahul Dravid in 2007. He was promoted to Test Captain in 2008. His captaincy record was mixed in this format, with victories against New Zealand in 2008 and the Border-Gavaskar Trophy vs Australia, but losses to Sri Lanka, Australia, England, and South Africa by large margins in away matches.

Dhoni declared his retirement from Test cricket on December 30, 2014, and he stepped down as captain of T20Is and ODIs in 2017. On August 15, 2020, Dhoni declared his retirement from all forms of international cricket, and he continues to play in the IPL.

Here are the companies in which Dhoni has invested in —

 

1. Khatabook

In March 2020, Dhoni joined the SaaS-based ledger startup as an investor and brand ambassador. It’s an internet platform that allows businesses to keep track of their financial activities and accept payments.

The firm claims to have accumulated five crore registered merchants in barely a year.

KhataBook is one of India’s fastest-growing businesses. Small businesses can use the KhataBook mobile app to keep track of their customer debits and credits in one spot. When a transaction occurs, money is due, or collection is needed, it sends a message to the consumer through Whatsapp and SMS.

It functions the same as a ledger book (Bahi-khata) in digital form, and because it’s digital, you may access your business transactions from any device, anywhere.

KhataBook is a small business credit management platform developed by Ashish Sonone, Dhanesh Kumar, Vaibhav Kalpe, Jaideep Poonia, and Ravish Naresh in 2018.

Ravish and his undergraduate friends created the software kyte.ai (digital cost manager) in 2016. This software gained a lot of popularity in the beginning, but it didn’t scale as predicted.

They found that most of their customers come from non-metropolitan areas. And they all utilise traditional methods to track their daily transactions in the bahi Khata, and they see a significant opportunity to collaborate with small enterprises. Therefore KhataBook was born as a cash management software for them.

Features of the KhataBook App:

Get a fast return on Credits with a Free payment reminder – With a free payment reminder, you can get a quick return on your credit. When a consumer receives an SMS after completing any transaction with your company, you can use the payment reminder tool to remind them to pay.

It’s safe and secure – You can easily manage all of your company transactions on your mobile device.

Manage your credit cards: Keeping track of your consumer credit accounts is simple without losing track of the specifics. Because it creates a backup, you’ll be able to retrieve all of your information from anywhere at any time.

KhataBook is available in ten Indian languages, including Hindi, English, Kannada, Bengali, Tamil, etc. Also available in Hinglish.

KhataBook’s Business Model: How Does It Make Money?

Khatabook is without a source of revenue. The business model of Khatabook is similar to that of Cred.

Khatabook is now planning to provide small business owners with a complete financial solution in India.

According to the Economic Times, they have lately applied for NBFC status (National Banking Financial Corporation). If the Reserve Bank of India approves, this will contribute to Khatabook’s earnings.

2. Cars24

CARS24 is an Indian online used automobile marketplace based in Gurugram, Haryana. Every year, the company sells around 1,50,000 automobiles. The company is one of India’s four major organised participants in the secondhand car market.

Vikram Chopra, Mehul Agrawal, Gajendra Jangid, and Ruchit Agarwal created Cars24 in 2015 as a website for buying and selling secondhand vehicles. It expanded abroad in 2021, opening offices in the United Arab Emirates, Thailand, Australia and other countries. 

The transaction is facilitated through the Cars24 portal, which has a physical presence. Apart from selling used automobiles, the company’s services include paperwork like transferring the car to the new owner’s name, allowing for end-to-end transactions, and an online auction platform for businesses wishing to sell their pre-owned vehicles. 

As of 2019, the company has 202 locations in India, spread across 73 cities. Aside from its branches, the organisation maintains a network of over 10,000 channel partners spread throughout 230 Indian cities.

Cars24 Moto will be launched in May 2020. Cars24 Moto is a platform that allows users to sell used two-wheelers like motorcycles, mopeds, and scooters. It has established a service that will enable customers to have their car inspected at their location rather than at a branch.

Funding and endorsements

In total, Cars24 raised $50 million in the Series A and Series B rounds. It raised another $50 million in a Series C round of funding in 2018.

In 2019, Cars24 raised $100 million in a Series D investment round. Sequoia Capital, Exor Seeds, DST Global partners, Kingsway Capital, KCK and Unbound, and Moore Strategic Ventures are some of the company’s investors. Cars24 received an investment from cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni as part of the Series D round of funding, and he became the company’s brand ambassador. In 2020, Cars24 raised $200 million in a Series E round of funding, making it a unicorn firm with a valuation of over $1 billion.

Apart from Dhoni, the brand has received endorsements from actors Boman Irani, Mandira Bedi, and Nawazuddin Siddiqui in commercials.

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) has signed the company as its major front-of-shirt sponsor for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022. The sponsorship of SRH by Cars24 is the first time an IPL team has been sponsored by a firm that sells used automobiles.

Subsidiaries

In 2019, Cars24 Financial Services was founded as a corporation’s subsidiary. In July 2019, the Reserve Bank of India granted the company an NBFC licence. In 50 cities throughout India, Cars24 Financial Services provides consumer credit facilities to auto dealers and end customers in the used car industry. The firm had disbursed loans worth a total of 400 crores in 2019-20 (equal to 422 crores or US$55 million in 2020).

In 2019, Mahendra Singh Dhoni invested an unknown sum in the Series D financing of the e-commerce marketplace for pre-owned autos. He’s the company’s brand ambassador.

3. Seven

SEVEN is an Indian lifestyle brand that designs and sells casual and athletic apparel and footwear. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, a notable Indian cricketer and former captain of the Indian national cricket team, established the brand in February 2016. Dhoni is the brand ambassador for the company and controls the company’s footwear division.

Background

RS Seven Lifestyle (owned by Rhiti Group) and MS Dhoni launched SEVEN in New Delhi on February 19, 2016. Dhoni has been designated the global spokesperson for the brand. The company was a lifestyle brand that designed and sold athletic clothing and gear. The clothes and fashion accessory division of the business are owned by RS Seven Lifestyle, while the footwear division is owned by MS Dhoni. Dhoni has a licencing agreement with RS seven as well. The brand’s creation and distribution cost between Rs 150 crore and Rs 200 crore, according to investors. Manufacturing for the brand takes place in India, China, and Vietnam.

Brand name

The brand name SEVEN corresponds to MS Dhoni’s ODI and T20 shirt number. In the IPL, SEVEN is the official gear sponsor of the Chennai Super Kings.

Sponsorship

It supported Ahmedabad-based I-League 2nd Division side ARA FC.

Stores and distribution

In India, SEVEN has 15 distributors. The brand’s official e-commerce partner is Flipkart. The brand may be found in over 300 multi-brand retail outlets in India. The first SEVEN store opened in Dhoni’s birthplace of Ranchi on July 20, 2017.

Dhoni, who is recognised for his unique sense of style, started his own lifestyle brand, Seven, named after his famous jersey number 7. According to reports, he only owns the company’s footwear division, with the rest being controlled by RS Seven Lifestyle. In addition, he serves as the global brand ambassador for the company he founded in 2016.

4. 7InkBrews

Mohit Bhagchandani, the founder of 7Ink Brews, has contacts in both the sporting and food & beverage industries. In April of 2021, the brand was introduced.

The brand has been established around the traits of the champion cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who happens to be the brand ambassador and stakeholder of 7ink Brews. It was founded by Mr Mohit Bhagchandani and co-founded by Mr Adil Mistry and Mr Kunal Patel. They recently launched a campaign called #GoOneMoreRound, which features M.S Dhoni as the brand ambassador and actual changemakers and influencers.

Copter7 goods are available in wine shops in Mumbai, Pune, Goa, and Bengaluru. They’ll be available at pubs, restaurants, and other locations across the country once things settle down.

Copter7 Premium Strong Beer and Copter 7 Premium Lager are the two variants of Copter7 beers.

The former, which has an ABV of 6.8%, is made with imported Munich, Vienna, and Pilsner malts and is brewed in the Strong German Märzen lager style. Copter7 Strong is a malty amber lager with a toasted fragrance and a mild mouthfeel due to minimal bitterness. It has a characteristic caramel sweetness that makes for a flavorful and smooth drink. The hop flavour is kept to a minimum to emphasise the spicy aromas with herbal undertones. According to its description, it gives the drinker the sensation of biting into a newly baked loaf of bread.

On the other side, the Copter7 Premium Lager is a light and smooth beer designed to quench the consumer’s thirst on a hot afternoon. This beer is prepared with 2 Row Pilsner malt for a smooth, clean flavour and has an ABV of 4.8 per cent. 

Additionally, under the Copter7 umbrella, the firm has created handcrafted chocolates that are a visual and gustatory delight. 7Ink Brews has collaborated on these with David Belo, a well-renowned chocolatier and chef best known for his Mysore-based craft chocolate brand Naviluna. These bean-to-bar chocolates, made with sustainably cultivated cacao from Southern India, are organic, vegan, and GMO-free, allowing consumers to savour the pure Indian cacao bean. Mosambi Zest, Strawberry and Coffee, which is a dark chocolate variety, Mint, and Mulberry – the only ones created with cocoa butter and hence non-vegan – are some of the unique flavours that include local ingredients.

The company’s co-founders, Adil Mistry and Kunal Patel, developed a new line of chocolates and beverages called Copter7, which was inspired by Dhoni’s legendary helicopter shot and his jersey number.

5. Hotel Mahi Residency

Many people are unaware that MS Dhoni runs a Hotel Mahi Residency hotel. The hotel’s brand is exclusive to Jharkhand, Mahi’s home state, and no other franchises exist.

Ranchi is home to Mahi Residency. This resort has a restaurant and a front desk that is open 24 hours a day. Guests can make use of room service and a communal lounge.

Air conditioning, a seating area, a TV, a safety deposit box, and a personal bathroom with a shower are included in the hotel’s units. Every room at OYO 2929 Hotel Mahi Residency comes with bed linen and towels.

A continental breakfast is available to guests at the hotel.

OYO 2929 Hotel Mahi Residency is 37 kilometres from Ramgarh. Birsa Munda Airport is 4 kilometres away from the hotel.

One of the lesser-known investments made by the cricket legend is this one. Very few know that Dhoniowns, a hotel in Ranchi, Jharkhand, is known as Hotel Mahi Residency.

 

6. HomeLane

HomeLane provides a virtual design platform and a real-time pricing engine. Homebuyers can choose from hundreds of kitchen, wardrobe, and wall unit combinations, each with its own layout, design and colour. After homebuyers place orders, HomeLane interior designers assist customers in customising the kitchen or wardrobe to fit the apartment area.

Buying a home for the first time is special for everyone. It’s both terrifying and thrilling. So many stories, ideas, hopes, and possibilities are colliding. At HomeLane, we’ve seen thousands of homeowners go through this process.

The ideas and dreams of first-time homebuyers are converted into their dream house when they are combined with their knowledge and skill. And HomeLane makes home interiors easy by delivering these dream home interiors in a personalised, budget-friendly, and predictable manner. Above all, it guarantees its consumers that their home interiors will be delivered in 45 days, or they will reimburse your rent.

They are establishing the most reputable and customer-centric home interior brand at HomeLane. HomeLane ensures three objectives — transparency, ease, and predictability — by handling the entire process — design, delivery, installation, and post-installation care. HomeLane’s tech-enabled teams have built over 15,000 houses in ten locations in the last six years, and they’re just getting started.

Last August, Dhoni joined the business as a partner and brand ambassador. 

HomeLane is a platform that delivers house interiors in 45 days. It was created in 2014.

7. Sports Fit

SportsFit is a religious and cultural foundation for people who are passionate about living a sedentary lifestyle. They are people that live and breathe fitness 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with the purpose to revolutionise India by redefining exercise as a “fit necessity.” It provides personalised exercise solutions, including meal-diet plans, on-demand. They aim to inspire everyone to see fitness as a need rather than a choice, believe in themselves, and go ‘SportsFit’ to build a healthy, fit nation.

SportsFit Pvt Ltd, the privately held gym enterprise of Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, is talking with over three dozen franchises in India to extend its operations to 200 gyms in the next five years. Through the licencing arrangement, the company plans to create facilities in Dubai and Singapore within the following year.

According to claims in the media, Dhoni owns roughly 200 gyms under this brand.

Dhoni owns the Ranchi-based hockey team, which took over for the disbanded Ranchi Rhinos in 2014. Previously, the Patel-Uniexcel Group held it.

8. Ranchi Rays

Ranchi Rays (RCR) is a field hockey team from Ranchi, Jharkhand, that competes in the Hockey India League (HIL). On October 25, 2014, it was confirmed as the replacement squad to replace the disbanded Ranchi Rhinos. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, an Indian cricketer, owns it.

Ranchi Rhinos, the first champions of the Hockey India Competition, left the league in September 2014 when Patel-Uniexcel Group’s owners struck an agreement with Hockey India over a number of issues. A month later, it was announced that the Ranchi Rays franchise had been purchased by a new ownership group comprising Indian conglomerate Individuals Rahul Srivastava and current India batsman Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

MS Dhoni is an avid sports fan. It’s no surprise that the former Indian captain has been interested in a variety of sports over the years. His love of hockey has urged him to become a co-owner of the Ranchi Rays hockey team. As a cricketer, MS Dhoni has had a big influence. His effect extends beyond cricket’s confines. 

The Ranchi Rays are a formidable force in the Hockey India Competition (HIL), a world-class hockey league. A player on the club, Manpreet Singh, recently said that the players are honoured to play for Dhoni’s franchise. They, like MS Dhoni, strive to maintain calm in tense situations.

MS Dhoni makes an effort to communicate with his teammates. He makes it a point to watch the games and sends his best wishes to the team.

9. Chennaiyin FC

Chennaiyin Football Club is a Tamil Nadu-based professional football club in India. It competes in the Indian Super League, the country’s highest football league. The club was created in August 2014, during the Indian Super League’s debut season. One of the most successful clubs in the league’s history. In the 2015 and 2017–18 seasons, the team won the Indian Super League title on both occasions.

Vita Dani, Bollywood star Abhishek Bachchan, and Indian cricketer MS Dhoni own the club. The team’s name, Chennaiyin FC, translates to “Chandi’s Football Club” in Tamil, where the ‘yin’ suffix is comparable to an English possessive’. Since its establishment, the club’s predominant colour has been blue, and its logo is the Dhrishti Bommai, which represents chasing away negativity and conserving positive in Tamil culture.

History

The city of Chennai was one of nine recommended sites for franchise bidding when the Indian Super League was created in 2014. However, on April 11, 2014, it was reported that Chennai’s main bidder, a group led by Sunil Gavaskar, would withdraw due to agreements with the Board of Control for Cricket in India. The Bangalore owners Sun Group walked out of the 2014 ISL season in August 2014, just two months before the season began, due to disagreements with the organisers. Initially, it was reported that the ISL organisers were seeking new owners for the Bangalore franchise. Still, it was then confirmed that Ronnie Screwvala and actor Abhishek Bachchan would jointly bid for a Chennai team instead.

Foundation

ISL officials were reportedly assessing the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai for the planned club on August 14, 2014. Finally, Abhishek Bachchan and Vita Dani made a bid for the squad. Marco Materazzi, the Italian World Cup winner, was hired as player-manager on September 12, 2014. Former Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni became a joint co-owner of the club on October 6, 2014. The club’s home shirt was first worn on October 9, 2014, although the pattern was modified for the 2018–19 Indian Super League season.

Edited by Prakriti Arora