The UAE’s Al Maya Group has acquired a majority stake in online grocery delivery platform Conektr.
The acquisition comes as part of the group’s plans to expand its distribution base.
The Al Maya Group, founded in 1982, operates 90 supermarkets and stores across the Middle East and employs more than 5,000 people.
“Conektr is among the most transformative partnerships we have had,” said Kamal Vachani, director of Al Maya Group.
“The platform will significantly enhance our ability to drive engagement with retailers and play a more meaningful and relevant role in the distribution and retail industry.”
Conektr adopts a B2B2C business design that supports retailers’ digital transformation efforts and deliveries to customers across the country, and allows retailers to manage their stock inventory online.
“This partnership helps Conketr to plug in, play and scale our company with instant access to their world-class warehousing and fleet of services across the GCC region,” said Madhusudhanan Janakarajan, founder and CEO of Conektr.
Last month, the platform collaborated with global fintech company Triterras to provide working capital to support micro and small retailers.
The collaboration seeks to help more than 7,000 small grocery and fast-moving consumer goods retailers seeking digital financing for improved inventory management.
The companies also intend to support small grocery retailers that are unable to secure bank credits and have to rely on owners’ equity or suppliers’ credit.
The UAE’s food and grocery industry is expected to rise at a compound annual growth rate of 9 per cent to value $40.47 billion by the end of 2025, according to Research & Markets.
Amid the pandemic in 2020, online ordering and delivery of groceries amounted to $1.1 billion, as per reports by RedSeeds Consulting.
