OmniRetail, popularly known as OmniBiz, has raised an undisclosed amount from Aruwa Capital Management, an early-stage growth equity and gender lens fund investing in Nigeria and Ghana.
OmniRetail is a tech-first B2B e-commerce company that aggregates end-to-end retail operations to help manufacturers, distributors, logistic partners, and retailers achieve their business goals through a seamless supply chain framework and embedded finance.
Originally established in 2019 as a salesforce automation software company catering to brands and distributors in the FMCG sector, OmniRetail recognized the need to address a broader scope within the retail value chain following the COVID-19 pandemic. This led to the development of OmniBiz, an online platform that enables retailers to easily order stock and receive delivery within 24 hours.
Today, the Company has successfully onboarded prominent brands and manufacturers in Africa, streamlining their distribution processes through technology, efficient operations, and valuable market insights. With over 65,000 retailers on its platform, OmniRetail offers seamless access to a wide range of product SKUs, order fulfillment, payment and collection solutions, inventory financing, inventory management, and business intelligence.
OmniRetail is targeting a significant and thriving retail market in Nigeria and Africa, where more than 100 million independent and informal retailers generate over $1 trillion in annual sales. According to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), 90% of retail transactions occur through informal channels, accounting for 70% in Kenya, 96% in Ghana, and 98% in Nigeria.
The fragmented and disorganized nature of the supply chain poses challenges for retailers, hindering the potential of manufacturers, distributors, and retailers themselves. OmniRetail addresses this issue by leveraging its technology suite and on-ground operations to solve critical problems faced by players in the distribution value chain in Nigeria and Africa.
OmniRetail says it is actively working towards achieving financial inclusion throughout the entire ecosystem and has made deliberate investments in data and technology to gain insights into the financial health and cash flow of its loyal retailer network. Through strategic partnerships with multiple banks and POS providers, the OmniPay platform facilitates seamless payments and offers working capital finance to retailers based on their business information. By creating a unified payment and credit platform, OmniRetail stands out in the informal retail and trade segment with its focus on strategic intelligence, data utilization, and empowerment.
The impact of OmniRetail’s efforts is evident, as it has significantly increased retailers’ earning potential by more than four times, contributing to the enhanced financial inclusion of retailers in Nigeria and Africa. Notably, over 78% of the Company’s retailers and distributors are women, further promoting gender equality and fostering economic empowerment across the continent.
According to Deepankar Rustagi, CEO of OmniRetail, “We are happy to partner with Aruwa Capital on this exciting journey as we approach our next phase of growth. We believe having Aruwa as shareholders will be instrumental to our growth as the team at Aruwa Capital have shown their dedication to providing strategic support that is instrumental to us becoming the growth engine of traditional retailers in Africa. This investment will help us achieve our market deepening and expansion plans, enabling us to solve even more challenges faced by players in the retail distribution value chain. We are grateful to the Aruwa Capital team for believing in our vision and the grassroot impact we are making in Africa.”
Commenting on the investment, Adesuwa Okunbo Rhodes, Founder & Managing Partner of Aruwa Capital said, “We are excited to have completed this investment in Omniretail. We find the technology stack of the Company very impressive as they have created different interconnected technology solutions that are addressing real-life challenges in the retail value chain in Africa. We think this technology stack will in the long-run play a major role in the Company’s network-effect strategy in the FMCG value chain in Africa. We are also impressed with the depth and robustness of the Company’s supply chain operations, that is powering the e-commerce segments. We think these supply chain capabilities have played a strong role in the growth the Company has witnessed within the past three years. With OmniPay, we also see strong prospects for the Company as they are clearly customer-obsessed and committed to creating real impact for all stakeholders. In line with Aruwa’s gender lens investing strategy, OmniRetail is promoting the economic growth of over 50,000 women retailers today and counting, through improved revenue and inclusion to the digital financial bracket. In addition, about half of the Company’s workforce are female, further illustrating our thesis of women empowerment through our investments.”
