Shiphaly, a Cairo-based marketplace that connects shoppers and travelers, has received an undisclosed six-figure sum from Saudi Arabian and Egyptian angel investors. With the participation of well-known Saudi angel investors, the round is led by Faisal Abdulsalam, the creator of Purity and an active investor in Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
“We are very proud of the traction that Shiphaly has had over the past months. We are also very happy and privileged to have a group of top-notch angel investors backing us in our journey to transform the way people shop from abroad in Egypt and other future markets,” said Kahled Elabd, CEO of Shiphaly.
The new investment will be used to expand the online marketplace’s storefronts to Africa and other Middle Eastern nations, as well as to introduce new product features.
Why The Investors Invested
Despite the fact that Shiphaly’s business has experienced certain obstacles in the first half of 2020 as a result of various Covid travel prohibitions around the world. It grew even more in the second half of 2020 and the early part of 2021, owing to significant demand from shoppers who are unable to go internationally. Shiphaly has seen a 25% month-over-month increase in delivered orders, as well as over 15,000 posted orders worth over $2 million, since the beginning of 2021.
Read also:China’s MSA Capital Again Leads $33m Funding Round In Egyptian Ecommerce Startup, Capiter
“We are very excited about Shiphaly and we believe that Shiphaly offers a unique idea to solve an issue in many countries in the Middle East. Shipahly’s unique team offers the technical and commercial depth and experience to ensure the success of the company. We strongly believe that Shiphaly has the potential to grow exponentially in many markets with the advantage of having a low cost of entry to different markets being an e-marketplace,” Faisal Abdulsalam, the lead of this round said.
A Look At What Shiphaly Does
Shiphaly, a marketplace connecting shoppers who want to buy products from abroad with travelers who can buy and deliver the products in exchange for a cash reward, was founded in 2019 by Khaled Elabd, Hisham Elshaer, Ibrahim Sabek, and Nader Nabil. It offers shoppers a 100% money-back guarantee in the event of any problems with their order.
Flat6Labs in Cairo accelerated Shiphaly and provided startup funding in 2019.
Read also:MTN Plans to Sell its Afghanistan Business
Shiphaly’s unique selling feature is around the platform’s safety and security for both travelers and shoppers, and it provides shoppers a 100 percent money-back guarantee if their product is defective.
“We believe there is huge potential in the Egyptian market as well as other markets in Africa and the Middle East. We are very excited about the next phase of growth for Shiphaly and are gearing up to launch new features very soon to solve more and more of our customers’ problems,” Hisham Elshaer, CCO of Shiphaly said.
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