Tempe, May 21, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- For decades, local service businesses have been overlooked by tech – expected to juggle bloated marketing tools, overpriced agencies, and underwhelming results. Today, Zoca announced a $6 million round to flip that script. The company is building an AI-first growth platform to help hyperlocal service businesses get discovered, booked, and rebooked — promising one outcome: more paying clients, guaranteed. The funding round was led by Accel with participation from GTMfund, Elevation Capital and Better Capital.
While most software hands small business owners a tool and wishes them luck, Zoca takes a different approach. Its AI agents manage the entire growth funnel, automatically identifying what services are in demand in a specific neighborhood, optimizing for discovery, converting leads into bookings, and re-engaging clients at just the right time. The result is a done-for-you system that fills calendars and drives real revenue, not just clicks or leads. Zoca has already helped over 1,000 local beauty & wellness businesses generate $10M+ in revenue, book more than 120,000 appointments, and save hundreds of hours on manual marketing tasks
Zoca founders Ashish Verma and Robin Chauhan.
Founded in 2024 by longtime friends and IIT Kharagpur classmates Ashish Verma and Robin Chauhan, Zoca was born out of a fundamental realization: while local service professionals are masters of their craft, the systems meant to support their growth simply weren't designed with them in mind. As more professionals left salon chains to open independent businesses, the gap became clear. These entrepreneurs weren't failing because of talent – they were being failed by a system that never prioritized helping them get found, booked, and consistently in demand.
"We saw a fundamental disconnect," says Ashish Verma, Zoca's co-founder and CEO. "These entrepreneurs are selling time, not products. Every empty chair is revenue they'll never recover. The real challenge isn't just visibility anymore—it's everything that comes after it. Being found is one part, but converting leads, filling schedules, and retaining clients is where businesses either grow or stall.
“What makes this space unique is the business model itself. These service professionals aren't focused on selling more units—they're maximizing their available time. So the ROI on every lead, every appointment, and every repeat visit directly impacts their bottom line. That's why we built a system that addresses the entire customer journey, not just one piece of it."
Zoca fixes this with what it calls hyperlocal intelligence – a proprietary engine that detects neighborhood-level demand patterns for services like "lymphatic drainage massage" or "glycolic facial" that vary dramatically from block to block. The company's data shows that demand for "lymphatic drainage massage" can be 3x higher in one part of a city versus another area just miles away, while terms like “glycolic facial" follow entirely different patterns depending on local demographics. Instead of relying on generic keywords or city-wide trends, Zoca builds individualized strategies based on what people are actually searching for within a 5-mile radius and then executes it all automatically using its AI agents workforce.
Zoca team empowering local businesses get ahead.
That includes optimizing across 50+ local ranking factors, building mobile-first websites, responding to leads 24/7 through conversational AI, and sending
personalized retention SMS and email campaigns timed to each customer's history. Zoca has recently launched AI agents for paid ads and social media management taking charge over the entire marketing value chain for a small local business. With Zoca, businesses get what used to require five tools, an agency retainer, and hours of work every week.
Delivering for local businesses: Dimitri Mesin, owner of Red Chair Salon with Zoca co-founder Ashish Verma.
Gail Aungst, Co-owner of Ohana Sun Tanning, commented: "Google search is really important and so key words are critical for us. One of them is "tanning near me". Zoca's helped us stay on top and win. They are totally helping us with our rankings". While Latasha Seawood, Owner of Slay by Vashae, said: "The first 30 days of using Zoca, my business went from maybe 3-4 people a day, into a queue. I was forced to turn people away. No lie. It was like a 30 day turnaround. If you search “sew-in” in your area, I pop up. And that's because of Zoca."
Happy customer: Khrishtopher Wisdom, owner of 1047 Hair Lounge, with Zoca co-founder Ashish Verma.
AI is the reason this is possible now. Zoca's model turns high-cost services into software margins, unlocking growth for a market that's historically been considered too fragmented and low-margin to serve.
"Zoca is driving business outcomes for the underserved $750B local services market: says Manasi Shah, Partner at Accel. Ashish and the team have the highest customer obsession with a deep understanding of AI in automating a significant number of use cases applicable to the local services market. Growth AI agents are just the beginning, Zoca will create an agent-led OS for every hyperlocal business to achieve full potential.”
Paul Irving, Partner at GTMfund, added: “These businesses are the cornerstones of their communities, but most are being left behind in a digital and AI-first world. Zoca allows them to focus on what matters most: delivering an exceptional service to their customers. The growth, the customer retention and engagement - all on auto-pilot with Zoca’s AI platform. It’s a total game changer for these local businesses, and we couldn’t be more excited to support the Zoca team on their mission.”
Poorvi Vijay, Principal, Elevation Capital, said: “Zoca arms every neighbourhood business with a 24/7 AI growth engine. Ashish and Robin's passion and unique insights to serve this underserved market and help them transform with AI is truly outstanding. We are thrilled to back them as they build the operating system for hyperlocal services worldwide."
Looking ahead, Zoca plans to expand its agent architecture, deepen its platform integrations, and bring its system to more verticals where professionals face the same time-based growth challenge. The company believes the future of local business will be powered by invisible AI infrastructure – not dashboards, but agents quietly working in the background to drive outcomes.
"In the next decade, the top local businesses around us won't be big chains. Instead, they'll be local professionals — quietly supercharged by AI that helps them attract more clients, keep them coming back, and grow faster than ever. At Zoca, we are making it possible for independent businesses to thrive without all the tech headaches and focus on delivering exceptional experiences to their customers.” said Ashish Verma.
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Media images can be found here.
About Zoca
Zoca uses AI to drive traffic, convert leads, and turn them into loyal customers. Zoca’s AI agents manage the entire growth funnel, automatically identifying what services are in demand in a specific neighborhood, optimizing for discovery, converting leads into bookings, and re-engaging clients at just the right time.
Zoca has already helped over 1,000 local beauty & wellness businesses generate $10M+ in revenue, book more than 120,000 appointments, and save hundreds of hours on manual marketing tasks. For more information please visit https://zoca.com/ or follow via LinkedIn and Instagram.
About Accel
Accel is a global venture capital firm that aims to be the first partner to exceptional teams everywhere (Facebook, Flipkart, etc.), from inception through all phases of private company growth. Accel has been operating in India since 2008, and its investments include companies like BookMyShow, Browserstack, Flipkart, Freshworks, FalconX, Infra.Market, Chargebee, Clevertap, Cure Fit, Musigma, Moneyview, Mensa Brands, Myntra, Moglix, Ninjacart, Swiggy, Stanza Living, Urban Company, Zetwerk, and Zenoti, among many others. We help ambitious entrepreneurs build iconic global businesses. For more, visit: www.accel.com
For further information please contact the Zoca press office: media@zoca.com.
