Egypt grocery delivery startup, RabbitMart secures $11M record pre-seed funding for its expansion
RabbitMart, a Cairo-based e-grocery startup, has secured $11 million in pre-seed funding, signaling the largest ever pre-seed round in the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa region.
Investors in the round include Global Founders Capital, Foundation Ventures, Raed Ventures, MSA Capital, and Goodwater Capital, amongst other international investors.
“We have been following their progress since the very beginning and are very excited to be supporting their journey,” Lorenzo Franzi, an investor at Global Founders Capital said. “The Rabbit team is setting a new standard for the grocery industry in Egypt and the broader region. They offer a new experience to customers compared to traditional grocers and local stores.”
Co-founded in June 2021 by Ahmad Yousry, Walid Shabana, Ismail Hafez, and Tarek El Geresy, RabbitMart or Rabbit for short, began operating fully in October. The startup has an ambitious vision to disrupt how Africans shop online, promising a 20-minute delivery timeline for every order.
Betting on this, RabbitMart can provide its customers peace of mind by ensuring that what they want will never be out of stock and will arrive in under 20 minutes thanks to its tech-enabled, hyper-local fulfillment centers.
“With Rabbit, you can buy a product in seconds, and get it in minutes. The simplicity of the promise is made possible through our industry-leading tech that powers live inventory management, blazing-fast pick, and pack operations, and optimized point to point delivery that comes together to ensure your order arrives on time, every time,” explains Walid Shabana, Rabbit’s Chief Technology Officer.
Over the last two decades, consumer expectations have shifted dramatically. RabbitMart believes that on-demand shopping will follow in the footsteps of on-demand music, media, and transportation.
Rabbit is building a business with speed as a key value, reflected in how the company operates and works. The platform measures things in seconds because, at the end of the day, they are in the business of time, not retail or convenience. Rabbit works hard to make sure you have more time in your day.
While delivering in 20 minutes in the busy streets of Cairo seems like magic, it is only made possible through the proprietary tech built by RabbitMart.
“At Raed, we always look for world-class founders who can be leaders in their industry,” Talal Alasmari, founding partner of Raed Ventures, said. “We believe that the founders of Rabbit, with their ambitious vision and extensive experience, possess the ability to lead in the Ultra-fast delivery domain, not only in Egypt but in the region as a whole.”
Rabbit went from concept to first order in just 130 days. Since mid-October, Rabbit has been live. Rabbit understands how much their customers appreciate being able to complete their daily shopping in under 20 minutes.
Rabbit is currently serving four locations in central Cairo: Mohandeseen, Zamalek, Maadi, and Nasr City, with plans to expand areas of coverage soon. Rabbit plans to cover several major cities in the next 12 months and expects to be processing hundreds of thousands of orders per month.