Ridelink, a Ugandan e-logistics startup, has raised $150,000 in pre-seed funding from Ortus Africa Capital, the Omidyar Network, and the African Leadership Academy’s Young Entrepreneurs Fund (Anzisha).
The company aims to reduce the cost of transportation for SMEs by linking businesses with truck drivers via technology that makes business operations run more smoothly, resulting in increased revenue, mobility efficiency, and performance. In Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, this platform primarily serves the urban, peri-urban, and rural areas.
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Ridelink Head of Operations Daniel Mukisa revealed how the company converted its business strategy from a B2C to a B2B one, which allowed the company expand its income dramatically, in a 2019 story by Anzisha. From $37,000 in 2017 to $140,000 in 2018, the company had seen a 300 percent increase in revenue. After getting private financing from Seedstars in 2020, Ridelink now has a total funding of $250,000.
The Young Entrepreneurs Fund seeks to incentivise co-investments in its graduate programs, according to Thokoza Mjo, Head of the Anzisha Prize Fund. According to Kenneth Legesi, CEO of Ortus Africa Cash, co-investing with Young Entrepreneurs Fund and “backing African entrepreneurs with local capital” helps them flourish while also giving other investors confidence to do the same throughout the continent.
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Ridelink, an e-logistics platform that connects SMEs to a large network of operators, was founded in 2017. Over 250 SMEs have been served, with over 2000 drivers delivering cargo across East Africa.
Ridelink has also qualified as one of the Top 20 Finalists in the 2021 Africa’s Business Heroes competition, demonstrating Uganda’s entrepreneurial ingenuity by leading the drive for democratizing logistics for small enterprises.
Charles Rapulu Udoh
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer