Backed by GreenTec Capital, Amitruck aims to enter new markets as part of its expansion strategy. The Kenyan logistics company, which declared a 1,000% growth in revenue by 2021, has raised the necessary funds for the project.

The Kenyan logistics platform Amitruck announced yesterday it is preparing its expansion into Uganda and Tanzania. The project will be partly financed with the $4 million recently raised by the company.

Amitruck, which connects cargo owners with logistics and road transport professionals, plans to strengthen its team to ensure its deployment in these new markets. “The most important purpose of this round is hiring. We are also improving our technology as we start our expansion into other countries in Africa,” Amitruck founder and CEO Mark Mwangi said. The company has raised nearly $5 million in funding to date. Before its latest operation, Amitruck announced in February that it had secured an undisclosed pre-seed investment from U.S. firms Dynamo Ventures and Plug and Play Ventures. CEO Mwangi reported that the company increased its revenue by 1,000% in 2021 compared to 400% a year earlier. This significant increase has been supported by strong demand from Kenyan customers who, as a result of covid-19, have become more adapted to delivering and shipping packages through specialized companies.

“In Africa, 99% of goods have to use a vehicle of some type. We don’t use that much in terms of waterway or air. And at the moment, it can cost up to five times more than it does in more developed markets to move those goods,” the CEO said. The logistics sector in Africa is still fragmented and dominated by many intermediaries. This contributes to making it more expensive. Logistics spending by manufacturers and retailers exceeded $160 billion in 2018 and is expected to continue to grow over the next few years, according to estimates from investment firm GreenTec Capital.

Chamberline Moko