Saudi Arabia-based B2B e-commerce platform Sary has acquired Egyptian B2B marketplace Mowarrid for an undisclosed amount, the company told reporters on Tuesday. The acquisition is part of Sary's strategic expansion plans throughout North African markets starting with Egypt, the second-largest economy in Africa, and the third-largest in the Arab world with a $60 billion wholesale and retail trade industry. It comes shortly after Sary had raised $75 million in Series C funding, led by Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund's fully-owned subsidiary Sanabil Investments. Sary, the MENAP-focused startup founded by ex-Careem employee Mohammed Aldossary and Khaled Alsiari in 2018, has secured three funding rounds to date totaling $112 million. (L to R) Saudi-based B2B marketplace Sary's founders Khaled Alsiari and Mohammed Aldossary with the CFO Musaab Hakami. (Photo Credit: Sary) "This acquisition reflects a strategic move for Sary toward its expansion plans throughout the North African markets starting from Egypt, the second-largest economy in Africa, and the third-largest in the Arab world with a $60 billion wholesale and retail trade industry," a statement by Sary read. Sary, which connects small businesses such as mini-supermarkets, restaurants, cafes, and hotels with a network of consumer goods wholesalers via mobile and web applications, has more than 350,000 customers, serving over 40,000 businesses in 15 cities across Saudi Arabia. The company moves more than 270,000 pallets of goods across the country. Founded in 2018, Mowarrid is focusing on the B2B food and grocery markets. The Egyptian startup claims to have unlocked a $25 million run rate, enabling more than 10,000 retailers to digitally procure all their needs across a variety of more than 1000 products in the platform. Ahmed Essam, founder of Mowarrid "Egypt is a strategic market for us and has a huge synergy with the Saudi and GCC markets," said Mohammed AlDossary, co-founder and chief executive of Sary. AlDossary also added that the industry has witnessed significant growth in the past years with very strong digitisation in the wholesale and retail trade industry which accounted for around 15 percent of Egypt's GDP. "Since 2018, Mowarrid's journey has been rewarding by enabling small businesses in Egypt with smarter supply chain solutions. Today, joining forces with Sary to build one stronger entity with a solid footprint, regional network, and technological capabilities in two of the most important economies in the region." Ahmed Essam, founder and chief executive of Mowarrid, said. "Sharing many values and principles, our combined force is our greatest advantage in the next years as we continue to solidify our grounds in the current markets and continue the expansion journey with a solid head start,"
