The archive · Commerce & Marketplaces · Strategic decision · 2018–2025
Sary bets Saudi corner shops buy wholesale online; $112M and a ShopUp merger later
Saudi B2B marketplace Sary digitized wholesale ordering for small shops, raised $112M, added embedded credit, and merged with ShopUp into SILQ Group in 2025.
Sary
What the business is
Saudi B2B marketplace connecting micro and small retailers (grocers, cafes, restaurants) with FMCG wholesalers and manufacturing brands through mobile and web apps, with logistics and embedded financing on top.
Starting capital：$112M raised by end-2022 ($30.5M Series B in May 2021, $75M Series C in Dec 2022); $110M equity-plus-financing backing for the merged SILQ Group in April 2025
How it started
Sary was founded in April 2018 by Mohammed Aldossary, a former Careem general manager, and Khaled Alsiari. Their premise: Saudi micro-retailers ordered stock through phone calls, WhatsApp and fragmented distributor networks with no price transparency or reliability, inside a retail market Aldossary estimated at $165 billion. The platform connected those shops directly to wholesalers and brands.
What happened
By May 2021 Sary had 100,000+ app installs and, during the pandemic alone, served 30,000+ verified retail businesses and moved 4 million tonnes of goods across Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam. It raised a $30.5M Series B led by VentureSouq with Rocketship.vc, STV and existing backers Ra'ed Ventures, MSA Capital and Derayah, and announced plans to build native fintech products so revenue would not depend on marketplace commissions. In March 2022 it closed a $75M Series C, acquired Egypt's B2B marketplace Mowarrid to enter North Africa, and took a stake in Pakistan's Jugnu to enter South Asia. In April 2025 Sary merged with Bangladesh's ShopUp to form SILQ Group, backed by $110M led by Sanabil Investments (PIF) and Valar Ventures; the combined group had served 600,000+ retailers and hotels, restaurants and cafes, processed $5B+ in transactions, disbursed $750M+ in embedded financing and shipped 100 million orders.
How it ended up
Still scaling: as of April 2025 Sary operates as part of SILQ Group, pitched as the largest B2B commerce platform spanning the Gulf and South Asia, with Sanabil Investments and Valar Ventures putting $110M behind the merged entity.
Background
Sary is a Saudi B2B marketplace founded in April 2018 by Mohammed Aldossary, a former Careem general manager, and Khaled Alsiari. It connects micro and small retailers — grocers, cafes, restaurants, hotels — with FMCG wholesalers and manufacturing brands through mobile and web apps, taking over ordering, logistics and, later, financing for a supply chain that previously ran on phone calls and fragmented distributor networks in a retail market Aldossary estimated at $165 billion.
The bet was that the digitization would stick if the marketplace also became a fintech. By May 2021 the company had 100,000+ app installs and had served 30,000+ verified retail businesses during the pandemic, moving 4 million tonnes of goods across Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam; it raised a $30.5M Series B led by VentureSouq with Rocketship.vc and STV, and said it would build native financial products so revenue would not depend on marketplace commissions.
Sary then expanded regionally with a $75M Series C in March 2022 — acquiring Egypt's Mowarrid and taking a stake in Pakistan's Jugnu — and in April 2025 merged with Bangladesh's ShopUp to create SILQ Group, backed by $110M led by Sanabil Investments (PIF) and Valar Ventures. The combined group reports 600,000+ retailers served, $5B+ in cumulative transactions, $750M+ in embedded financing disbursed and 100 million shipments.
What has to be true
- Saudi small retailers bought FMCG stock through phone calls and fragmented distributors, leaving a digitizable gap that a marketplace with logistics could own.
- Pandemic lockdowns forced 30,000+ small businesses onto the platform, proving the demand existed once friction was removed.
- Embedded credit and payments, not commissions, became the planned revenue engine — turning the marketplace into a distribution channel for financial services.
- M&A across MENAP (Mowarrid, Jugnu, then ShopUp) let the company export the playbook instead of fighting Saudi alone.
What can be applied
Become the middleman: digitize wholesale procurement for small shops, then convert the network into a credit and payments business rather than betting on marketplace commissions.
Aftermath
As of April 2025, Sary is part of SILQ Group following its merger with Bangladesh's ShopUp. The merged company, backed by $110M from Sanabil Investments (PIF) and Valar Ventures, claims to be the largest B2B commerce platform spanning the Gulf and South Asia, with 600,000+ retailers served, $5B+ in transactions, $750M+ in embedded financing and 100 million shipments since inception. Sary's earlier $112M of funding was raised across a Series B led by VentureSouq and a $75M Series C closed in December 2022.
Sources
- Sary raises $30.5 million Series B
- B2B eCommerce Platform Sary Expands to Pakistan With Stake in Jugnu
- ShopUp and Sary merge to form SILQ with $110m US-Saudi investment
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