Sendy the logistics firm has shut down its retail and supplier trading platform known as Sendy Supply. It has also laid off 20 percent of its workforce amid funding challenges.
Sendy Supply allowed retailers to make orders from different suppliers at discounts while outsourcing transport and logistics to the company.
Reports indicate that Sendy has been forced to restructure due to a funding drought that has hit Kenyan start-ups as developed economies raise the cost of lending.
The company, which started operations as a delivery service before spinning off e-commerce and retail supply platforms, has shut down the latter business line to focus on sellers placing goods in its warehouses for marketing and delivery.
Sendy which has raised a combined $29 million (Sh3.4 billion), has been expanding since 2015, increasing its headcount from the four founders Mesh Alloys, Evanson Biwott, Don Okoth and American Malaika Judd, to 300 workers.
Since last year, the fund has been seeking to raise $100 million (Sh12 billion) for expansion into western and southern Africa, including Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa and Egypt.
Sendy founder and CEO Mesh Alloys , had this to say, “We have paused the Sendy Supply services, our solution that provides a platform for general retailers to purchase stock at competitive prices from multiple suppliers and manufacturers. This has effectively affected 20 percent of our workforce.”