ISLAMABAD: Adviser to Prime Minister for Commerce and Investment, Abdul Razak Dawood has lauded e-commerce promoter ‘Bazaar Technologies’ on successfully raising $ 6.5 million, in what was now being termed as one of the region’s larger seed rounds.
The adviser said on his official Twitter account, “This is impressive considering the fact that the start-up was founded just 8-months ago by two youngsters at Karachi for digitizing of the traditional retail sector in Pakistan.”
“I have always believed in the entrepreneurship of our youth and this speaks volumes about their abilities,” Razak Dawood said. “I wish them success and urge our young entrepreneurs to emulate this as with a large population base, Pakistan is one of the largest potential e-commerce markets in the world,” the adviser said.
Bazaar, a Pakistani online marketplace that connects retailers directly to wholesalers and manufacturers, has raised a $6.5 million seed round, the second-largest ever in the Middle East and North Africa region and the largest in Pakistan, one of the venture capital firms that invested in the project said on Tuesday.
Last year, Bazaar raised $1.3 million in Pakistan’s largest-ever pre-seed round. Co-founded by Saad Jangda and Hamza Jawaid in April 2020, Bazaar started a closed pilot in Karachi during extreme lockdown conditions because of the coronavirus pandemic when shorter working hours created major supply chain problems for retailers.
“Congrats to @joinbazaar on raising a $6.5M seed round, the second-largest ever in MENA and largest in Pakistan, co-led by @Global_Founders founder and @indusvalleycap,” Aatif Awan, the founder of Indus Valley Capital, said on Twitter. “Couldn’t be more thrilled to partner with them as they revolutionize the $150B retail industry in Pakistan.”
“Magic happens when smart ambitious founders take on huge markets. In just 8 months, Bazaar has built an incredible team and product, serving more than 10 thousand retailers every month.”
Awan, former VP of Growth at LinkedIn, said when his firm first invested in Bazaar in May last year, they set ambitious targets for 2020. “They went on to crush those goals by 10x!” he added.
He said it was exciting that so many investors had invested in Pakistan for the first time through the Bazaar deal, including early-stage VC S7V, Singapore-based Wavemaker Partners, Saudi Arabia’s Derayah Ventures and US-based NextBillion Ventures.
