MENA Expansion Ahead for UAE's Novimed After Acquisition by Opontia

UAE-based e-commerce enabler, Opontia, has acquired the UAE-based direct-to-consumer (D2C) medical e-commerce startup, Novimed.

Co-founded in 2017 by Ahmed Sami and Rana Hassan, Novimed emerged to fill the gap in the market for medical tools equipment, evolving to offer various medical products for both doctors and patients undergoing treatment plans.

“The idea was built around the fact that some patients need positioning or lifestyle modification to support their treatment plan,” says Sami, who previously worked at Takeda pharmaceutical company. “We have heard that from physicians and saw the market need for that.”

The company’s products are already sold on various e-commerce platforms including Amazon, Noon, and Mumzworld, accumulating AED 600,000 in sales during 2020. It is currently planning to sell new tools and equipment for physiotherapy.

Its new parent company, Opontia, will enable it to expand both regionally and beyond the MENA market by increasing its visibility through marketing and expanding its range of products.

Opontia, which was launched as recently as May 2021 by Manfred Meyer and Philip Johnston after closing a $20 million Seed round, works to facilitate the scaling and geographical expansion of e-commerce startups.

After its latest acquisition, Johnston stated that "Novimed has a very solid and very strong brand identity of its own and is created as a homegrown, local brand that has very strong reviews and customer base.”

“People love the product,” he added, “it has some defensibility and the potential to grow that we look for.”