Mylerz, an Egyptian e-commerce fulfilment startup has raised $9.6 million in funding to scale its operations and fuel its plans to expand across Egypt and enter three North African markets over the next few months. The funding round was led by Egypt-based private equity firm Lorax Capital Partners and saw the participation of Fawry; one of the country’s biggest e-payment companies.
Fawry happens to be Mylerz payment partner and will continue as the startup ramps up plans to enter Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia. Fawry will provide all the electronic payment and cash collection services Mylerz needs to thrive in these new markets.
“Our immediate plan is expanding across Egypt, opening new markets, and facilitating cross-border trade for our customers. We have the right partners to make this happen and to grow our end-to-end logistics platform,” Mylerz Founder and CEO, Samer Gharaibeh said adding that “Fawry’s over 250,000 agents will help us deposit cash collected from buyers since cash on delivery is still the preferred method of payment in Egypt. This will make our business less risky, and the reduced risk means that we can grow much faster.”
Fawry’s investment in Mylerz is part of its strategic plans “to build an integrated commerce ecosystem in Egypt and explore international expansion opportunities with strong partners like Mylerz and Lorax,” Fawry’s CEO Ashraf Sabry said.
Mylerz is also looking at entering the e-commerce space in East Africa where it believes lies endless possibilities. The startup has a long-term goal of eventually becoming a pan-African shipping logistics provider.
Mylerz was founded back in November 2019 by CEO Samer Gharaibeh who worked at Aramex; a UAE-based multinational logistics and fulfilment company. He was devoted to the company and worked there for about 23 years before leaving, he held the role of Head of Africa.
“Because of my experience at Aramex, I understand the regulations of different countries in Africa and know the right kind of partnerships to have, to be successful. I’m using this knowledge and experiences to make Mylerz the preferred pan-African logistics provider and e-commerce partner,” he said.
With the Mylerz platform, orders sent out to be delivered can be tracked, and their destination, as well as time for delivery, can also be changed. It also provides additional information for partners such as demographics and consumer behaviour patterns.
Mylerz says it provides same-day deliveries for its numerous partners. The startup has 21 fulfilment centres and plans to open up a 25,000sqm hub to keep up with the growing demand for storage, order processing, and deliveries. This hub which it plans to build will be its biggest so far. According to the CEO, fulfilment centres are placed in strategic locations to be close to customers.
The startup claims that it has delivered 2 million packages to date. The startup has a fleet of 350 eco-friendly vehicles powered by compressed natural gas, mostly referred to as CNG.
“We operate a decentralized system, and these hubs, which are close to our customers, help us to consolidate the packages and dispatch for deliveries fast enough to meet our promise of same-day delivery,” Mylerz CEO explained.
“Mylerz has leveraged its know-how and premium technology offering to address several problems associated with last-mile delivery in Egypt including complex routes, the prevalence of cash, and diverse merchants with diverse needs. Lorax is backing Mylerz to become the continent’s first fully integrated e-commerce logistics player, bringing a unique blend of premium customer service and efficient delivery services to regional businesses and consumers alike,” Ashraf Zaki, Managing Partner at Lorax Capital Partners said.
