$4.5 M raised in pre-Series A funding round by Egyptian retail-tech startup Cartona
Cartona, a B2B e-commerce site founded in August 2020, focuses on tackling supply chain and operational issues for the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry by digitising the conventional, mostly offline trade market.
The business offers an asset-light marketplace that allows grocery merchants to purchase digitally from a vetted network of suppliers for their storage needs. Cartona has grown to over 30,000 users in Cairo and Alexandria since its start, processing over 400,000 delivered orders worth EGP1 billion (US$63.5 million) annually. It collaborates with 100 fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) businesses, 1,000 distributors, and wholesalers to provide consumers with over 10,000 products on its platform, including dry, fresh, and frozen food.
After receiving US$4.5 million in a pre-Series A round of investment headed by Global Ventures, a Dubai-based international venture capital firm, with participation from Kepple Africa Ventures, T5 Ventures, and a group of angel investors, Cartona plans to expand further.
The funds will be utilised to further develop the technology’s capabilities in order to improve the user experience and integrate integrated finance into the product and purchase cycle. Cartona also intends to grow throughout Egypt.
“Small and medium retailers deserve the opportunity to operate their businesses efficiently while delivering growth simultaneously. To do so, they need access to credit, inventory, and payment services. We are dedicated to empowering the B2B ecosystem through technology and supply chain innovation. Cartona is committed to building a strong network of digitally connected retailers that have better control over their businesses through running a seamless daily operation,” said Mahmoud Talaat, chief executive officer (CEO) and co-founder of Cartona.
Global Ventures managing partner Basil Moftah expressed his excitement about leading the financing round.
“The trade market is one of the most sophisticated, yet characterised by multiple critical inefficiencies across the value chain. Cartona’s asset-light approach tackles those inefficiencies by optimising the trade process in unique ways and does so with minimal capital spent. The company has already demonstrated consistently stellar growth over the past year. We are thrilled to partner with the company’s solid, highly capable, and experienced founding team on their third entrepreneurial journey,” he said.
