The E-commerce startup, ZUMI has shut down its store, making it the 7th startup in Kenya to shut down due to lack of funding.
Launched in 2016, ZUMI started as a women-focused digital magazine but shut down shortly after disclosing its plan to transition to an e-commerce apparel platform, after struggling with low digital advertisement revenue. Zumi didn’t stay closed for too long as it later got back to business in 2020 as a B2B marketplace for retailers and suppliers, especially in the apparel business.
Co-Founder and CEO of ZUMI, William McCarren commented on the closure and said the current macro environment made fundraising for the company extremely difficult and the business was unable to achieve sustainability to thrive.
ZUMI is the 7th Kenyan startup after Kune Foods, WeFarm, BRCK, Notify Logistics, and Sky-Garden which shut down in 2022 due to a tough economic environment.
Before the sudden closure, ZUMI had built a strong marketplace for apparel merchants to secure inventory and financial services that made over $20m in sales. During this time, the company gained 5,000 loyal customers and a team of 150 people with experience from major Kenyan companies such as Jumia and Twiga Foods.
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