Kasha Global, a B2B and e-commerce startup in East Africa has raised $21 million in a Series B round led by South Africa-based venture capital, Knife Cap.
Having established itself in the East African market as a digital retailer specializing in household and health products, Kasha will now focus on extending its operations to South Africa.
In a statement, Kasha’s Founder and CEO Joana Bichsel noted that the new funds will be a major motivation in the company’s quest of establishing itself as a leading digital commerce platform across Africa.
In particular, Kasha will look to advance its goal of easing accessibility to healthcare products in Africa.
“We will be using the funds from Series B to expand across Africa and investing in strategic areas of the business,” Bichsel stated.
On his part, Keen van Zyl, the Co-founder of KnifeCap, expressed his conviction that the investment will yield returns. He affirmed that Kasha has proven to be a capital-efficient company with great potential growth in Africa.
“So excited to partner with the inspiring Joanna Bichsel and team for our KnifeCap Series B investment in Kasha! Looking forward to growing this health tech company together,” van Zyl noted.
The Rise of Kasha Global
MS Joanna Bichsel who had previously worked for Microsoft and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation started Kasha in 2016.
By then, the company was dealing in health products including diapers and menstrual hygiene products directly targeted at the consumers.
The business thrived and with time morphed to a business to business eCommerce. Its range of products also expanded gradually as it embraced more fast-moving consumer products including household goods.
In 2020, Kasha closed a $1.5 million Series A funding which enabled its entry into the Kenyan market. Currently, Kasha deals in products ranging from HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment products to family planning and reproductive health products.
Kasha is currently focused on the mission of positioning itself as a last mile distributor of health products across the continent and thus improving access to healthcare.
Following the recent breakthrough in the Series B round, Kasha’s leadership has set goals on expanding its revenue stream and sustaining its upwards trajectory to take the company to the next level.