In 2017, two entrepreneurs observed that Cairo’s food and grocery supply chain was riddled with inefficiencies, piling up unnecessary expenses and missed growth opportunities for both retailers and suppliers.
With a strong belief that technology solutions could bridge this gap, they created an end-to-end B2B supply chain solution that connected wholesale suppliers with grocers.
Over the years, the company has consistently grown its presence to over ten cities in Egypt and serves over 55,000 merchants.
A Technology-driven Model for rethinking food and grocery supply chains
Central to the company’s business model is its app, where grocery stores can conveniently order their inventory, streamlining inventory management, product discovery, and delivery.
The main challenge was optimizing the fulfillment of deliveries from suppliers to grocery stores. It outsources its fulfillment to third-party providers, and it needs the right technology backing for timely fulfillment at the right costs and the right service levels. All while being mindful of diverse regulatory requirements and consumer behaviors.
Since the logistics providers worked with the business on a contract basis, managing contracts and making payments manually as they scale was also a big challenge.
The company teamed up with Locus, a leading customer experience and dispatch management platform, to resolve these challenges. With the help of Locus, it was able to streamline fulfillment operations to optimize their delivery routes, reduce transit times, and see significant savings.
In addition, Locus Contract Management capabilities were able to gain visibility and better manage contracts and payments. This partnership allowed the business to scale up its operations while maintaining high service levels, reinforcing its position as a market leader. It soon aims to bring end-to-end operations visibility with its Track and Trace feature.
Growing to new markets
The business’s transformational impact is clearly being noticed. It has been able to expand its operations throughout Egypt and beyond, and now plans to expand to Morrocco and other regions in the Middle East and North African (MENA) region soon. With its solid foundation in fulfillment, it is well on its way to empowering retailers in the food and grocery industry across the MENA region.