A Pakistani online pharmacy startup has raised $8.5 million in a road led by 500 Startups to expand its supply chain infrastructure and further improve the technology.
With latest funding, the total financing of the Karachi-based startup, launched in 2014 by Furqan Kidwai, has surged to $10.5 million.
The round is based on equity and debt, and it also included the participation of existing investor Sarmayacar and two family offices.
The startup using its mobile phone app and website sells medicines, personal care products, and medical equipment to individuals and pharmacies across the country.
To maintain the standard of its products, the online firm works directly with the pharmaceutical companies and large distributors.
The users are just required to upload the prescription or add the items manually to the carts on the platform. After verification, the order is delivered to the user.
Since its launch, the firm has provided services to nearly 11 million people in the country. Dawaai has its setup of delivering medicines in 98 cities through fulfillment centres.
In Lahore and Karachi, it provides medicines to people within two hours in certain areas, according to menabytes.com
In addition to medicines and medical equipment, Dawaai’s platform now enables users to consult doctors online, receive health services (nursing, physiotherapy, etc.) at home, and book lab tests.
The founder of online company in a statement stated, “We are laser-focused on our mission to make healthcare accessible and affordable for the people of Pakistan and wider South Asia. The first step in achieving that is building the missing pharmaceutical supply chain infrastructure in the markets we operate and honing the next generation of talent to take our economies forward. This financing is enabling us to carry forward on our journey to make the lives of people better across the length and breadth of Pakistan, with a low-cost healthcare model for all Pakistanis.”
Tony Wang, the Managing Partner at 500 Startups, said, “In recent years, Furquan and his team have established Dawaai not only as the premier digital health startup in Pakistan, but as a pioneer tech company in a growing startup ecosystem. We are thrilled to continue to back Dawaai as it facilitates access to healthcare to millions of people.”
Read more: https://pakobserver.net/ignite-announces-winning-startups-of-first-pakimpactinvest-event/
