Digital labour platforms are going to be the norm: Rachit Mathur, founder & CEO, Avenue Growth

Rachit Mathur, founder & CEO, Avenue Growth

An on-demand work platform, Avenue Growth has a workforce of around one lakh gig workers or those who work outside of the traditional employer-employee relationship. The company’s founder and CEO, Rachit Mathur, discusses with Surya Sarathi Ray the factors that are driving the industry and will drive it going forward.

Thanks to the pandemic, 2020 was a boom year for digital labour platforms. Is the trend continuing?
Yes, the trend is continuing and is here to stay. Anything which can connect people with earning opportunities in real time will stay.

How many gig workers have you deployed in the last three months? What is the total count now?
We have deployed close to 3,500 gig workers in last three months. Total count now is around one lakh.

Which sectors are driving the demand? Do you think that the demand curve will only go up from here on in these sectors?
We are seeing a good demand coming in from all sectors actually. Start-ups, FMCG, edtech, fintech, retail, banking and insurance are really hot right now. We are also starting to see demand coming in from healthcare sectors now.

Yes, the demand curve will go up majorly not only from these sectors but across the sectors.

Which are the sectors yet to catch up to the pre-Covid level?
From our context, mostly all sectors are back and above the pre-Covid level.

What are the factors driving the demand for gig workers? Are the factors driving the demand same across the sectors?
There are a number of factors that is driving the demand. The first and foremost is the low-compliance issues. There is no bench cost. Quick go-to market and an overall leaner setup are also the factors pushing up demand.

Yes, these are the common factors driving the demand. What is interesting to see is that the traditional Indian large business houses are also moving to gig workers for variety of roles.

What is the total size of the country’s gig industry now?
The total size of the country’s gig industry is around $300 billion now.

What are the factors that will drive the gig industry going forward?
Increasing pool of talent, ready deployment, plug and play solution, improving technology to connect, train and deploy candidates in real time are bound to drive the gig industry going forward. Recognition of the gig workers in the new labour code is also a welcome addition.