Orderin, a South African B2B delivery-as-a-service (DaaS) startup, has raised pre-Series B funding of ZAR71 million (US$4.7 million) to help it scale its infrastructure and improve its last-mile delivery service.
Following previous rounds of funding between 2018 and 2021, the funds raised in this latest round increases total investment to R303 million (US$19.85 million).
In the short term, Orderin will use the funds to scale its proprietary DaaS technology with its current client base, launch DaaS for SMMEs in the medium term, and create a flywheel for its long-term goal of providing a platform for all types of businesses to access a variety of affordable e-logistics services.
Orderin, which was founded in 2013, is one of South Africa’s largest on-demand delivery businesses, with clients like McDonald’s and Pick n Pay.
“E-commerce has been growing steadily over the last few years but the COVID-19 pandemic has rapidly accelerated this growth. Customer expectations have placed a demand on businesses for easy, quick and sometimes even free delivery options,” said Orderin CEO Thembani Biyam.
“Driving the growth and development of infrastructure will not only improve last-mile delivery and make it more accessible for businesses. This applies especially to SMMEs who can find it difficult to compete with larger enterprises on this point, but can also usher in a new future of e-commerce.”
Emerging technologies, according to Biyam, are playing a critical role in helping businesses to satisfy strong customer demand for last-mile deliveries, with Orderin’s head of finance Vulnavia Gura citing AI and data science as areas in which the company will expand its capabilities.
“These technologies play a crucial role in enabling dynamic predictive models which permit our customers to circumvent these challenges at the speed needed for successful delivery. However, it is costly. The funding we raise allows us to scale our talent, tech and offering as we grow our customers and revenue,” Gura said.
“We are moving quickly to mature our operational and governance models — our investors demand it and our stakeholders expect it. We believe that as a young company entrusted with investors’ funds we should create a reputation for prudence. This will engender confidence in future funders.”