Pricepally, the Nigerian group-buying startup founded with the objective to cut out middlemen and save consumers has secured funding from German firm GreenTec Capital Partners to aid efforts aimed at expansion and deepening operations within its primary base. Established in November 2019, Pricepally could be called a child of necessity as it sets a group-buying platform that aggregates consumer food demand and matches it with supplies directly from farmers and wholesalers.
The idea came out of the need to address the negative effect of middlemen in hiking the cost of products and services especially in Nigeria. The startup’s aim is to cut out middlemen and save consumers money by leveraging technology to aggregate demand via a sharing model. Users log in to the website or apps to purchase foods outright or arrange shared purchases, with these items bought from wholesalers or farmers divided accordingly and then shipped to each customer or a group destination.
Having secured an undisclosed amount of investment from the Frankfurt-based GreenTec Capital, which makes small investments in African tech startups but says its real value-add comes from its “company-building” model. The company has invested in a host of African startups, including Kenyan AI startup SuperFluid Labs, Nigerian logistics startup Parcel-it, Ivory Coast-based waste management startup Coliba, and, most recently, Ghanaian retail-tech startup Sumundi.
The startup has seen increased demand created by the global COVID-19 pandemic, and has ambitious plans to re-imagine the food system in Africa by connecting relevant stakeholders through their platform and building out the infrastructure to reach more Nigerians. Currently, Pricepally is available in the Lagos area, and offers one-to-two day delivery on orders.
Read also : https://afrikanheroes.com/2020/05/11/shut-borders-lockdown-threatens-food-supply-in-benin-republic/
Speaking on the development, Luther Lawoyin, the CEO of Pricepally said that “at Pricepally we are excited about our collaboration with GreenTec Capital, we see this as a significant step in achieving our vision of a sustainable food system for urban African cities. We are very aware of the huge challenge ahead but we are also very confident in this partnership and we look forward to the future.” Reacting, Maxime Bayen, senior company builder at GreenTec Capital Partners, said his company was thrilled to be supporting a team of “young, brilliant and gender-balanced co-founders” on such an important mission. “At the origin of Pricepally was the deep desire from a group of people to allow households to access essential and quality food at more affordable price,” he said.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry