Eyewa raises $2.5m in pre-series B bridge round

UAE e-commerce startup eyewa has raised a total of $11.1 million since its 2017 launch.

UAE-based eyewear e-commerce player, eyewa, has raised a pre-series B bridge round of $2.5 million from Wamda Capital, EQ2 Ventures, and Nuwa Capital.
This is eyewa's third funding round, and it comes hard-on-the-heels of a mid-2019 Series A round of $7.5 million and $1.1 million in seed round in 2018. This bridge brings the total raised capital by eyewa to $11.1 million in the space of three years, demonstrating the tech startup's growth and scalability potential as well as investor confidence in its business model.
The company specialises in online retail of sunglasses, eyeglasses, prescription contact lenses and color contact lenses, and offers a wide choice catered towards the latest fashion trends with a highly customised user experience throughout the discovery, ordering, packaging and delivery process.
Eyewa, which is now the largest online eyewear retailer in UAE and KSA, saw its business double during the lockdown as many customers switched their shopping habits away from the malls and stores towards the convenience and safety of online shopping.
Eyewa co-founder and co-CEO, Anass Boumediene, said: "Eyewa has seen exponential growth over the last year by making eyewear more accessible in our region. We offer a unique portfolio of trendy eyewear products at an affordable price and a great online shopping experience, solving a big pain point for our customers."
Eyewa will leverage the additional capital to double down on the rapid expansion e-commerce has witnessed during the pandemic and build new capabilities to further strengthen its position in the online eyewear space in the Mena region.
Mehdi Oudghiri, co-founder and co-CEO, added: "These funds will allow us to accelerate our disruption of MENA's eyewear retail sector through the implementation of innovative tech solutions, expanding our product portfolio and offering best in class customer service."
"The strong resilience and consistent performance demonstrated by eyewa's founders and team over the last few months speak to the company's immense potential to lead over the coming years," said Fadi Ghandour, executive chairman of Wamda.
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