Egypt’s digital restaurant supply chain startup Suplyd has closed a $1.6M Pre-SEED funding round by Endure Capital, Seedstars, Camel Ventures, Falak Startups, Outlierz, Plus VC, Fort, and Alex Angels, alongside a handful of strategic angel investors. Founded by Gohar Said, Karim Selima, and Ahmed ElMahdy, Suplyd is a solution that was created to address the daily struggles faced by HORECA, one of the fastest-growing segments in the MENA region’s economy.
Suplyd says it has developed a smart and reliable platform to digitize supply chain operations and bring efficiency to the MENA market. “I have been in the restaurant industry for almost 12 years, and the supply chain is a nightmare for most of the operators. To make up for all the inefficiencies you are always forced to either accept the fact that some of your menu items are not available or procure your requirements from the nearest market at a higher cost,” shared Gohar Said, CEO of Suplyd. “After opening my restaurant in early 2021, I talked with Karim and Mahdy and all it took was one simple question: what if technology took over?”
In an extremely fragmented market, Suplyd is aiming to streamline the fulfillment process of supplies by creating a B2B platform that facilitates order procurement, fulfillment, and payments. Through their platform, restaurants get access to a wide range of SKUs as well as a simplified transaction and delivery process. Karim Selima, CPO of Suplyd also shared, “In a market as huge as the food and beverage sector in the Middle East, fragmented methods of managing the supply chain processes result in significant waste, which has a huge negative impact on the economy and costs time and money. Using technology to solve a problem that affects one of the region’s fastest-growing industries is a fascinating challenge. Suplyd saves users’ time and money and takes advantage of the fact that our technology can handle even the most complex issues that arise along the supply chain, from ordering through warehousing to tracking and delivery.”
The startup says it provides a reliable and simplified source of supplies to the defensive and growing HORECA businesses across Egypt and Mena region improving the efficiency of the entire supply chain by focusing on restaurants’ first-mile operations. Tarek Fahim, General Partner at Endure Capital, commented, “Eating out is a major part of social life in the Middle East, but the supply chain that enables restaurants to serve customers is highly fragmented. We are thrilled to support the team and the platform Suplyd is building to digitise the supply chain for restaurants, improving efficiency and reducing food waste in our communities.”
The company’s goal is to empower the supply chain of Egypt’s F&B sector by providing intuitive digital solutions that would bridge the gap between restaurant operators and suppliers. “We are excited to partner with Suplyd to drive innovation in Egypt’s F&B procurement. The F&B supply chain remains highly fragmented with unreliable and costly delivery, especially for smaller restaurants. Suplyd aims to revolutionise the food supply procurement process, enabling restaurants to improve their bottom line and grow their operations. With their extensive experience, the Suplyd team is well-positioned to create real impact for the F&B sector of Egypt,” shared Patricia Sosrodjojo, Partner at Seedstars International Ventures.
After Cairo, the Suplyd team aims to scale up faster and further. Suplyd’s says its latest funding round will enable the company to invest further in its technology, grow the team, and expand its operations to even more areas. “Every sector in every vertical is getting its own share of disruption one way or another, not by one solution, rather a variety. Our bet, in this case, is no exception to our logic, bet on the most capable team tackling the problem, in this case the brilliant co-founders behind Suplyd. We have high expectations and a ton of trust in this team,” cocnluded Ahmed Hazem, Managing Director at Falak Startups.
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Last Updated on December 19, 2022 by Safiya K
