“We have already provided a mandate to our financial advisors from KPMG. They will be looking at what our needs are and how we can align them,” Abhijit Zaveri, founder and managing director of Career Mosaic, told The PIE News of the company’s funding plans.
The agency, which is run by the husband-wife duo Abhijit and Manisha Zaveri, is aiming to use its first round of funding on acquisitions, expansions and tech, capitalising on an ever-growing Indian study abroad market.
“The funds will be used for Career Mosaic’s primary growth. We have already identified some of the companies we’d like to acquire, and are also looking to use the funds in tech as well. Some of it will also go towards geographical expansion in the Middle East, North Africa, Central and Southeast Asia, where we are looking to hire sales personnel. The primary funds will be used in company and growth capital,” said Zaveri.
“India is a very important market. But we also want to diversify our sales in Vietnam, Indonesia, and more. Our contracts with US partner universities are global, so we can recruit students from, for example, Fiji to Ghana, and we want to utilise that opportunity.”
With over two million students expected to study abroad by 2025, it’s no surprise that India’s overseas higher education expenditure reached a whopping $60 billion in 2023 compared to $47b in 2022.
“The study abroad market in India has really changed in the last four to five years. A lot of large companies like ours were earlier called master agents, because of the B2B model, but now we are called tech-enabled master agents – especially post-pandemic. Post-Covid, a lot of universities came on the platform, and there was private equity coming into some companies in the spectrum,” stated Zaveri.
According to Zaveri, Career Mosaic has also seen close to 80% growth since 2023, with its sales now almost double what they were last year.
“We closed 2023 at sales worth INR 85 crores (£7.9m) and this year we will be closing at 135 crores (£12.6m). We are still quite a lean organisation in terms of our team size,” added Zaveri.
India is a very important market. But we also want to diversify our sales in Vietnam, Indonesia, and more
Abhijit Zaveri, Career Mosaic
A business-to-business company, Career Mosaic has partnerships with global universities, with agents further using their services to enrol students.
A major chunk of these universities hails from the US, with the firm announcing strategic partnerships with 10 American universities to establish teams in India for in-country representation and operations back in February 2024.
“I believe the US is still a very good destination for students, especially for the ones who want to pursue tech, IT, and STEM in general. Also, post the election, if Trump’s statement about college graduates receiving green cards does come into play, it will be a goldmine for students,” said Zaveri.
“The Biden government has also done a good job. India is also expecting two more US Consulates in Bangalore and Ahmedabad. It’s always a cycle – every three or four years things go down and it picks back up. So though we might have a flattish 2024, 2025 Fall should be really good for US-bound students.”
Career Mosaic has also set up an office in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City, one of India’s newest central business districts, as more international universities set up campuses in the region.
“We are the first study abroad company to set up an office in GIFT. We are located right below the Australian Deakin University campus. Some US universities have also shown interest in opening small campuses in India. GIFT has the potential to be a global education centre in the coming years,” predicted Zaveri.
