Sle3ti, a Casablanca-based B2B marketplace that allows retailers to order directly from suppliers and distributors of consumer goods (FMCG), has raised 12 million DH ($3.2m) from the investment fund of the Richbond Group.
Sle3ti will be able to expedite its rollout across Morocco’s regions and provide high added value services to merchants and its FMCG partners as a result of this investment.
“I am excited and honored to announce that Sle3ti has just completed the largest seed round fundraising for a Moroccan business with Moroccan investors. This 12MDH investment from the Richbond group’s investment fund demonstrates the enthusiasm and great interest that the Sle3ti model and growth have sparked among several Moroccan and foreign investors, but it is also a vote of confidence on the part of a reference Moroccan group that strongly believes in our growth and capacity to contribute decisively to Morocco’s digital transformation of trade and distribution,” Sle3ti’s CEO and co-founder Ayoub Harij said.
This is not the first investment in a startup in Morocco by the Moroccan industrial group, Richmond Group. Last year, the group bought a 40% stake in Moroccan fintech company Cash Plus from the private equity firm Mediterrania Capital Partners.
Read also Fintech Startup Wave Puts Orange Money’s Business Model In Cote D’Ivoire Under Threat. Here’s How
The Moroccan economy is partly dominated by Groupe Richbond. The company employs over 3,000 people and has 12 industrial suites as well as a distribution network with almost 2,000 points of sale. Apart from its real estate division that includes real estate development, hotel layout, logistics, rental property, and, more recently, hotels, the group is also active in the industrial sector, targeting mostly home consumer goods in Morocco and across Africa.
A Look At What Sle3ti Does
Founded in 2020 by Ayoub Harij and Abderrahim Zizi, Sle3ti claims it is the first ecommerce platform in Morocco that allows retailers to place orders directly with consumer goods manufacturers and distributors (FMCG))
Thousands of points of sale (grocery stores) are already using the company’s mobile app to place orders with its partner distributors, according to the company.
The company’s recruiting teams qualify, categorize, identify, and physically visit all retailers on its network before they can create accounts, according to the business.
It also says suppliers and distributors have complete control over the market using Sle3ti. They control their own product catalog, prices, promotions, and customer orders through the company’s own platform, it claims.
Sle3ti marketplace Sle3ti marketplace
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 write