Egyptian Startup 1Trolley Named as the Only MENA Winner in EBRD’s Start-up Innovation Challenge

Egyptpian on-demand pick-up and delivery startup, 1Trolley, has been named as one of the five winners of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s (EBRD) 2020 Start-up Innovation Challenge, making it the only startup from MENA or Africa to win.

Falling under the Star Venture Programme, the online challenge was the first of its kind for EBRD, which launched it in response to the Coronavirus crisis to seek innovative startups with scalable technologies. After over 225 startups from 30 countries applied, 1Trolley emerged victorious, alongside Plant an App (Romania), EMBIO Diagnostics (Cyprus), Otsimo and Fazla Gıda (both Turkey).

Founded in 2017, 1Trolley essentially digitises neighbourhoods, malls and other various strategic partners to meet the increasing demand of q-commerce. In layman's terms, it puts all your neighbourhood stores in the palm of your hand.

“It felt great that 1Trolley was the only winner from the region,” CEO, Walid Rashwan, told Startup Scene. “The challenge really made us sharpen our thinking and pitch. It was great to get a chance to present to a great panel and have the ability to work with some of the coaches throughout the preparation phase.”

As part of its win, 1Trolley receives a share of a total of $500,000 in mixed cash rewards and vouchers to cover the costs within the Star Venture framework, including business diagnostics, tailored one-on-one technical advisory, mentoring and access to international investors. For Rashwan and co., however, this is more than just an accolade, and gives them the momentum to start pondering bigger plans, including expansion. 

“The award enables 1Trolley in many ways, as it provides access to renowned international successful entrepreneurs, funding opportunities as well as access to strategic workshops with a great university (Cambridge),”Rashwan added. “Furthermore, the EBRD network is a great way to expand our business outside our launch city once we are ready to scale.”

Learn more about 1Trolley here.