Ramani nets $32m in Series A led by New York VC to digitize Africa’s CPG supply chains

• Ramani, a Tanzanian software company that’s building a cloud network of micro-distribution centers for consumer packaged goods supply chains, has secured $32 million in an equity and debt Series A round.
• New-York based venture capital firm Flexcap Ventures led the round alongside Infoscout founder Jared Schreiber.
• A Y Combinator alumnus, Ramani will use this funding to scale its micro-distribution center network and plans to introduce a micro-credit offering for these centers, where they’ll get inventory on 30-day terms or interest-free credit lines.
• Ramani also claims to be looking into ways to help Africans earn passive income through investing in the consumer packaged goods industry, via its platform.

Why it matters

Ramani joins peers such as Wasoko, ProXalys, and Marketforce in securing financing this year, all entities that are disrupting the way fast-moving and packaged consumer goods are being distributed in Africa.

The segmented and unstructured nature of Africa’s food and FMCG supply chains calls for interventions, which investors seem to be leaning into. The setup of existing distribution systems reveals data and management gaps and a lack of procurement capital on the part of the micro-distributors.

Ramani is solving supply chain issues with its inventory management system and procurement software designed specifically for Africa’s micro-distributors. The system further offers real-time sales tracking and the distributors also get to place orders easily via Whatsapp.

The software company claims to have grown micro-distributors’ revenues by 20%, having leveraged the platform’s services.

Ramani is the latest Tanzanian startup – or Silicon Zanzibar resident — to raise significant international capital as Tanzania works to provide an alternative to Nigeria and other East African countries like Kenya that typically dominate the continent’s startup ecosystem.

What they’re saying

“Ultimately, we want to make it easier for businesses to succeed in Africa and this new capital is another brick in that foundation. We’ve leveraged our Silicon Valley relationships and partnered with globally renowned investors, many of whom are successful founders themselves. We’re committed to repaying their faith in us and in Africa,” says Ramani CEO and Co-founder Iain Usiri.

Andrew Vigneault, Co-founder and General Partner of Flexcap Ventures added, “The CPG industry in Africa is being systematically transformed by Ramani’s huge ambition for a vastly improved and more efficient supply chain. It has been a pleasure to witness Ramani’s success and traction so far and we are certain the company will continue to achieve market-leading growth, fueled by a strong leadership team with exceptional technical expertise.”