Participated · Seed · Dec 2022

SideUp, formerly Voo, provides a full spectrum of e-commerce support services including payment gateways, API integration for shipping, warehousing, fulfillment and advisory. After four years operating primarily as a logistics marketplace the startup rebranded and expanded its offering to link micro, small and medium merchants to partner service providers. The company serves about 2,000 e-commerce businesses, offers cash collection and credit, and reports over $500,000 in gross merchandise volume per month with portfolio growth of roughly 30% month-on-month. SideUp has expanded into Saudi Arabia and will be headquartered there going forward while continuing to scale in Egypt. Management says the platform enables merchants to sell in 45 countries via partner providers. The startup plans to grow its clientele in Egypt and Saudi Arabia and to expand into at least two additional countries before the end of 2023.

Led · Seed · Oct 2022

Glamera, co-founded by Mohamed Hassan and Omar Fathy, provides an all-in-one SaaS platform that powers and supplies lifestyle service providers. The company participated in the Beban entrepreneurship TV show, where its founders received bootcamp training and mentorship from industry experts to prepare their pitch. Glamera raised $350,000 through a co-investment supported by the show. The funding came with involvement from Hope Ventures, the investment arm of Hope Fund, and Saudi investors Mr. Fahad AlRajhi and Dr. Khalid Altawil. Company leadership has said the Beban support was crucial to the success of the fundraising and expressed commitment to transforming their industry locally. No operating metrics or valuation details were disclosed in the article. Glamera provides an all-in-one SaaS platform and B2B2C marketplace for beauty and lifestyle service providers such as salons, barber shops, spas, gyms and makeup artists. Its software helps providers reduce wasted products and booking friction, manage their businesses remotely, and attract users through marketing tools. Founded in 2020 and headquartered in Riyadh, Glamera has expanded across Saudi cities including Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Taif, Qassim, Madina and Tabuk, and into Cairo and Alexandria in Egypt. The company plans to continue developing and launching new services and to expand further into GCC markets. Management says it has validated market need and targets working with 2,500+ clients and achieving $500M GMV by the end of 2023, aligning with Saudi digital transformation goals per CEO Mohamed Hassan.