Odiggo moving headquarters to Dubai and aiming for IPO in 2024 post-seed-round funding
Egyptian auto-tech app, Odiggo, plans to move its headquarters to Dubai post its recent $2.2 million seed funding from three of the top seed-stage VCs, Y-Combinator, 500 Startups, PlugAndPlay. Part of Odiggo’s seed-stage funding will also be used to continue developing their deep-tech dashboard software as well as reach IPO by 2024 with Billion Bookings as their “next achievable goal”.
Co-founded by Ahmed Omar and Ahmed Nasser, Odiggo’s top priority will be consistent growth. “We raised to fuel our growth. That's the main thing, so mainly it’s focusing on technology and expanding our team in UAE, Saudi Arabia and Egypt,” explained Ahmed Omar.
The automotive-tech app is on a mission to make car owners' lives easier by providing a one-stop-shop for everything car-related. Their easy to use online platform conveniently links car owners to dealerships to give the customer an abundance of options and the best prices in the market. Currently, Odiggo services over 45,000 users, across 3 markets and works directly with over 300 merchants to offer users a seamless experience. This is reflected in the 40 percent monthly consistent growth and 200 percent increase in user base since the start of the pandemic.
“We as co-founders come from a growth background which led us to grow Odiggo exponentially (around 100x) over the past 18 months,” pointed out Ahmed Omar & Ahmed Nasser.
Ahmed Nasser added, “We are very selective when onboarding, not just talent but potential investors and partners in this company. We realized we were at a time of growth and needed the right kind of partners not just to invest but to help us achieve our highly ambitious goals. This round of investing was the toughest yet, we went through a very rigorous process when trying to find the right fit, even turning down a few firms along the way.”
The pandemic, which has upended the shared mobility sector, ride-hailing and public transportation, has Odiggo and fellow auto-tech venture capitalists focused on logistics and supply chain visibility — two areas that have promise in this COVID-oriented world.
Odiggo is one of the region’s fast-growing automotive aftermarket platform, primed to disrupt the region’s large Automotive Aftermarket industry, valued at over USD 28 bn. In the Middle East and Africa alone the industry today is worth over $61 billion. The industry is expected to maintain solid growth patterns, projected to grow at a CAGR of 6 percent over the next five years driven by growing demand for vehicle modifications, and the increase in women drivers.
