Manila, Philippines – Local-based export startup 1Export has announced that it has raised US$800k in seed funding, which will be used to scale the company’s operations to Indonesia.
Said funding was led by Foxmont Capital Partners, as well as participation from a consortium from the Manila Angel Investors Network and Kerubin Capital, IdeaSpace Foundation, Singapore-based Iterative and other private investors.
Through the funding, 1Export aims to develop and improve its order handling capabilities, marketing services, financing, and other third-party integrations within its platform. Its lifetime revenue of US$1.5m and service availability in 23 countries warranted interest from the investors.
For Mel Nava, founder and CEO of 1Export, the latest funding will help scale their tech platform and services to ultimately support Filipinos MSMEs, contribute to Philippine exports, and create a distinctly Filipino footprint in other markets.
“Businesses all over the world are evolving at a rapid pace, even amidst a global crisis, thanks to technology. It’s time that businesses in the Philippines, especially micro, small, and medium enterprises, keep up with this digital transformation as well,” Nava stated.
First founded in 2016, 1Export had recently generated around US$500k or ₱25m in export sales, accounting for 0.2% of the total Philippine exports. It currently lists 450 supplier partners on its platform and distributes an overall volume of 4,000 tonnes of products, which are a mix of food and non-food products.
Meanwhile, according to Daniel Remo, chief operating officer of 1Export, with the spirit of ‘bayanihan’ or the Filipino equivalent of helping out one another amid this pandemic crisis, 1Export targets to enable Filipino businesses to go global.
“In the ever-changing landscape of e-commerce, we hope to be able to provide solutions that not only fit the needs of the here and now but to radically transform how Filipino businesses think of exporting,” Remo stated.
Nava added, “Our goal is to help Filipinos all over the world start and run a business, selling products that they’re proud of without having to go through the complexities of exporting. We’re glad we’re able to do so through our tech platforms over the past five years. We’re ready to accelerate our operations and improve our solutions so that we can aid more Filipino entrepreneurs, even during a global pandemic.”
1Export vets Filipino products to be cross-border compliant, allowing local businesses to follow the regulations of the market they want to explore or expand to. The company also offers all-around exporting services such as compliance documentation, product labeling, logistics, export facilitation, and intensive business matching.
