This is the fourth international office by GrubTech, which has a presence in Turkey, Siri Lanka, and Dubai.
The UAE-based company, which has been operating since 2019, has shown great interest in investing in the Egyptian market.
In an interview with Ahram Online, GrubTech’s co-founder and CEO Mohamed Al Fayed said that the company plans to expand further in the Egyptian market, with a plan to invest $5 million over the coming 12-18 months. The company intends to make Egypt its launching pad for its expansion in Africa.
“The Egyptian market is a large consumer market with a significant population. Also, the food market here is solid and resilient in the face of crises or shocks. It really keeps growing. In addition, the labour market in Egypt is big and cheap compared to other markets in the region, with significant experiences in all fields, which enables investor to start businesses easily with a home-grown team,” Al Fayed explained.
He added that the Egypt office has 20 employees, with a plan to increase this number to 300 over the short term.
“Going forward, we also aim to utilise our experiences and services from the Egypt office in other markets in the region and beyond. Moreover, we aim to use the Egypt office’s team to serve other offices in the markets we operate in,” he said.
Al Fayed also said that the Egyptian government has been making efforts to support the start-up ecosystem, including easing the procedures for founding new start-ups. He asserted that such efforts encourage investors and entrepreneurs to open business in the country.
“The restaurant sector is heading rapidly towards digitalisation, which needs solutions. The sector has developed over the time from going to the restaurant to have your meal, then to home-delivery, and then using online apps to order your meal. Consumer behaviour has been changing over time, which has consequently changed the market,” Al Fayed said.
Al Fayed added that COVID-19 has been an accelerator for all digital solutions, including food delivery.
Al Fayed said that GrubTech offers a one-of-a-kind in the Middle East and North Africa region, and that there are only three other companies globally that provide such solutions.
GrubTech provides over 20 apps for cloud kitchens and restaurants that enable them to develop the services they provide their customers, with clients in 18 countries in Asia, the GCC market, Jordan, Lebanon, as well as Egypt, Nigeria, South Africa, and Morocco in Africa.
“We offer an operating system that establishes a link between all the processes, starting from receiving the order down to delivering it to the customer or the end user. Forty percent of our clients are cloud kitchens and it is increasing rapidly in Egypt,” Al Fayed further said.
Al Fayed added that GrubTech has successfully closed three financing rounds since its inception in 2019 with a total value of $18.1 million, adding that it is set to start off its fourth investment round with a total value of $25 million by end of 2022.
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