Kwik, a platform that offers logistics services to B2B merchants ranging from social traders to e-commerce platforms, has received a $2 million Series A round of funding.
XBTO Ventures, a crypto finance corporation with a venture capital arm that invests in digital assets and other types of companies, led the investment round.
Humla Ventures, Nabuboto, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot, and Pulse Africa founder Leonard Stiegeler were among the new and existing investors.
Kwik competes in a congested logistics and delivery industry with renowned suppliers like Gokada in Nigeria, as well as YDS and Bosta in Egypt.
Its last-mile delivery service links businesses of all sizes with freelance delivery riders to convey their products to businesses and individuals.
Romain Poirot-Lellig, the company’s founder and CEO, says his goal is to bring the informal sector into the formal economy by concentrating on last-mile delivery, e-commerce (warehousing and fulfillment), and financial services.
The objective, according to him, is for Kwik to become the go-to app for African social vendors and conventional businesses who want to go digital.
It’s a tempting offer to combine delivery, payment, and e-commerce facilities in one simple smartphone app. The startup will be able to extend across all three core verticals and chosen geographic areas as a result of this funding round.
Kwik has made tremendous progress in offering merchants last-mile delivery and e-commerce fulfillment services, according to Poirot-Lellig.
Since its start in Lagos in 2019 and expansion to Abuja, Kwik has onboarded over 100,000 merchants who utilize the firm’s website and mobile apps to manage their logistical, commercial, and financial needs. More than 75% are frequent consumers on a weekly basis.
Kwik operates an asset-light and marketplace approach in which it links merchants with third-party providers of bikes, trucks, vans, and warehouses.
Deliveries of things ranging from parcels to food items take less than two hours, according to the company’s website.
The final piece of Kwik’s puzzle, financial services, took off around the end of 2021 after the firm released payment services, which now account for more than 10% of its GMV, according to the business.
However, there is more to be developed around it, and the new investment will assist accelerate that expansion.
Techbuild’s Take
As the COVID-19’s effects echo over the world, devastating businesses and economies and leaving governments scurrying to adapt, a few industries recognized increased opportunity to achieve more, not less, as the influence of the convention spreads.
This category includes e-commerce businesses and the delivery startups that link them with customers. Africa, with its large market for last-mile deliveries, seized the opportunity, and many firms are already flourishing and moving into other continents.
These prospects are especially prominent in rising economies such as Nigeria, where there is plenty of opportunity for growth and people are eager to adapt to innovative solutions.
Thankfully, these entrepreneurs are receiving all of the funding they require to not only develop, but also to add unique services to their platforms.
Kwik would use the funds to expand its client acquiring and finance activities beyond Lagos and Abuja, including Ibadan, Kano, Port Harcourt, and Kaduna. Poirot-Lellig also stated that by the end of the year, the startup hopes to have 800,000 merchants on its platform.
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