Startup SariSuki raises $10.7M in funding

E-commerce grocery startup SariSuki has raised millions of dollars worth of funding from regional and global investors, strengthening its position as a disruptor in the adoption of e-commerce in the grocery and retail sector.

In a statement, SariSuki said its total funding stands at $10.7 million since it started in 2021, following the latest $7.1 million round, which counted as investors Openspace, Susquehanna International Group (SIG), Global Founders Capital (GFC), Saison Capital, JG Digital Equity Ventures, and Foxmont Capital Partners.

With the new funds, SariSuki said it aims to deepen the breadth and depth of its operations to serve more Filipino consumers.

The startup said it was founded by a team emerging from within Southeast Asia’s scale-up tech giants led by Brian Cu, co-founder of Zalora Philippines and Grab Philippines, where he was country head for seven years.

Since its introduction in May 2021, SariSuki said it grew 36 times in terms of gross merchandise value (GMV) in the past nine months.

The business has now served more than 60,000 consumers through its growing number of community leaders called “KaSari.”

SariSuki said its operations extend across the Greater Metro Manila Area, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and some parts of Rizal and Pampanga.

SariSuki is adopting a Community Group Buy model, wherein members of communities who set up their business as a community leader or “KaSari,” are able to earn a healthy profit from directly selling produce and goods whilst performing the last mile fulfillment.

This model has enabled SariSuki to offer supermarket quality products at wet market prices, the startup said.

SariSuki said it acts as a consolidator of grocery items for their “KaSari” who in turn own virtual “sari-sari stores” that sell the goods to consumers.

While the Philippines’ e-commerce potential market size is estimated to reach $15 billion by 2025 as per Statista, the adoption of e-commerce in the grocery and retail industries remains at less than 3% of businesses, SariSuki said.

“SariSuki offers Filipinos value grocery products at extremely affordable prices that meet their daily needs. We are also empowering community leaders to be strong microentrepreneurs that will help propel the country’s economic growth from the grassroots level,” said Cu. — VBL, GMA News