Amazon's competitor, Noon, in the Middle East, plans to attract up to $2 billion in funding from investors, including the Public Investment Fund, over a three to four year period. years, seeking to capture a larger segment of the e-commerce market in the Gulf.
According to Arab Net, Noon founder Mohamed Alabbar said investments from the Public Investment Fund and others would be used to modernize infrastructure and help speed delivery. We are pleased with the progress we have made and its funding.
Noon operates in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, and is looking to expand into other countries throughout the Middle East.
The Middle East has been slower to adapt to e-commerce than other regions even though lockdowns to combat the coronavirus pandemic last year have accelerated the shift to online shopping and delivery the food. Alabbar said e-commerce currently represents between 2% to 2.5% of total retail trade in the region, compared to 20% to 22% in the Western world and China.
We have a long way to go, he added. There is a lot of room for growth and a lot of countries to cover.
Alabbar, who owns 50% of Noon jointly with other regional private investors, raised $1 billion from backers including the Public Investment Fund, to set up the company in 2016. It now has around 4 million users with its daily growth accelerating with a focus on grocery delivery.
Abbar's traffic is growing on a monthly basis. We easily double every year and the volume of parcel delivery is almost 2.5 times.
