Companies

Twiga grows supply network after Sh2bn Goldman Sachs deal

twiga

Beatrice Waigumo at her grocery store in Nyeri: Twiga buys and delivers to vendors. PHOTO | JOSEPH KANYI

Mobile-based food delivery firm Twiga Foods has moved to grow its supplier network days after it secured funding from top American bank Goldman Sachs.

The agro-based startup has invited expressions of interest from suppliers as it seeks to grow its distribution channels across the country.

Goldman Sachs recently acquired a stake in Twiga Foods following a Sh2.44 billion ($23.75 million) deal.

“We hereby invite all interested and eligible individuals, organisations and agents to be registered as suppliers and actively place bids for fresh fruits and vegetables for delivery to Twiga foods,” said the firm in a notice last week.

Twiga Foods, which was launched in November 2014, is essentially a marketplace that saves produce vendors the hustle of waking up at dawn to go to the wholesale market to buy supplies.

The firm buys produce and delivers it to thousands of vendors and has recently become a magnet for foreign investors, making it one of the most funded start-ups in the region.

Aside from Goldman Sachs, the firm has existing funding deals with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), venture capital firm TLCom Capital and French private equity fund Creadev.

The firm is now looking for suppliers of fresh produce, including potatoes, onions, watermelons and tomatoes.