Tushop Completes $3M Pre-Seed Funding to Boost Community Group-Buying in Kenya

Tushop, a Kenyan social-commerce site that allows Nairobi residents to buy goods for less money with free delivery, has raised $3 million in a pre-seed round.

JAM Fund, Breyer Capital, Chandaria Capital, TO Ventures, Golden Palm Investments, FirstCheck Africa, and DFS Lab were among the investors in the round, which was led by 4DX Ventures. Wasoko (previously Sokowatch) has also joined Tushop to make their first strategic institutional investment, signaling confidence in the team’s capacity to capitalize on Africa’s community group-buying opportunity. GB (CEO, Flutterwave), Raja Kaul (President, Sundial Group), Eli Pollak (CEO, Apollo Agriculture), and Ida Mannoh were among the angel investors that contributed to the oversubscribed round (Director of Growth, Chipper Cash).

Tushop will use the capital to expand its personnel, invest in technology to make its platform as user-friendly as possible, and expand across Nairobi before expanding to other Kenyan cities.

Tushop was founded in 2021 with the goal of making grocery shopping more economical and convenient for Kenyans, and eventually all Africans. When compared to supermarkets, dukas, or “mama mbogas,” community group-buying saves consumers up to 60% on groceries while also giving the convenience of free delivery. Tushop collaborates with “Community Leaders,” who collect orders from their neighbors and coordinate door-to-door delivery. This not only facilitates last-mile delivery, but it also provides additional money for Community Leaders who coordinate and distribute orders.

This not only facilitates last-mile delivery, but it also provides additional money for Community Leaders who coordinate and distribute orders. Similar communal group-buying enterprises, such as Nice Tuan in China and Favo in Brazil, have had great success in other regions.

In Africa, the difficulties that this paradigm answers are substantial. Kenyans, for example, spend 46 percent of their income on food (compared to 6 percent in the United States, 22 percent in China, and 16 percent in Brazil), and while community group purchasing is still in its infancy, the market has immense potential: Africans spend $260 billion on food each year. Shopping at dukas, “mama mbogas,” supermarkets, open-air marketplaces, or wholesalers is currently the norm, but it is typically less convenient and more expensive than community group-buying.

“Tushop is unique in this market because we know the customer – we are our own customers!” Cathy Chepkemboi, Founder & CEO of Tushop, stated of their rapid growth and great client retention. We’ve grown up with the problem of unaffordable food on the one hand, and the need for extra’side hustles’ on the other, due to chronically low salaries. We’ve also seen firsthand the challenges that manufacturers encounter when moving items through a disjointed supply chain, which puts a barrier between them and their customers. As a result, we’re laser-focused on providing a superior experience for our suppliers,’side-hustling’ Community Leaders, and end-customers in a seamless manner.”

“We are ecstatic to be working with some of the world’s most renowned investors, both globally and locally, who have a deep understanding of the African space in terms of logistics, technology, and payments, and we look forward to repaying their faith in us with future growth, commercial success, and meaningful social impact.” Wasoko’s investment in us is also a validation of our work thus far, and we look forward to collaborating with them to scale Tushop.”

Peter Orth, Managing Partner at 4DX added, “We think that the market opportunity for Tushop is incredibly large, and that Cathy is the right founder to go after it given her deep understanding of the market, and impressive execution and growth thus far. We’re thrilled to join such a strong team of other investors and advisors to help Tushop become the dominant player in group-buying across Africa.”

Daniel Yu, CEO of Wasoko commented, “It has been great witnessing Tushop’s incredible growth, driven by strong leadership and a team that embodies a true understanding of consumers and their communities. We are excited to work with a team that shares our vision of affordability and equitable distribution of goods across Africa.”