These 12 Startups are Powering the Middle East's E-commerce Engine

For years, the final frontier for e-commerce in the Middle East wasn't attracting customers online; it was getting the parcel to their door. The journey was a legendary trial of entrepreneurial patience: a pallet might traverse the Gulf on a trusted lorry, only to vanish into a black hole of cryptic depot codes and "please-call-driver" slips in a suburban maze without street names. The sector was a patchwork of fragmented carriers, cash-on-delivery complexities, and analog processes—a logistical Rubik's cube that stifled the region's blistering digital marketplace ambitions.

But over the past half-decade, a behind-the-scenes revolution has been mapping, digitising, and orchestrating this chaos. A formidable cohort of startups has emerged as digital Yodas for the supply chain, applying layers of intelligence to the physical world—they saw the knot as a core business opportunity. This transformation has shifted the epicentre of logistics value from owning the most lorries to possessing the best algorithms.

What unfolded is a masterclass in asset-light innovation. Instead of building fleets from scratch, savvy founders built platforms to unite and optimise existing ones. They created the digital glue—the Transport Management Systems (TMS), the freight marketplaces, the intelligent fulfilment networks—that turns fragmented capacity into a reliable, transparent service. This paradigm shift caught the eye of venture capital, leading to landmark funding rounds that have propelled regional champions and attracted global players.

The dynamics are now accelerating in three clear directions: vertical specialisation (with startups dedicating themselves solely to FMCG, cross-border, or chilled goods), geographic expansion beyond initial borders, and a keen focus on sustainability. The sector is maturing from solving basic visibility to offering predictive analytics and carbon-neutral delivery options.

This list is your guided tour to the architects of this new logistics landscape. We’ll explore the digital freight champions untangling long-haul routes, the warehouse whizzes revolutionising fulfilment, and the last-mile maestros who finally cracked the code to your doorstep. These are the startups that built the central nervous system for Middle Eastern e-commerce, turning its greatest weakness into its most compelling competitive edge.

TruKKer (Founded in 2016)

📍 Based in UAE/Saudi Arabia & operating across MENA, Central Asia, Asia & Europe

⚙️ Digital freight-matching and integrated trucking solutions.

Gaurav Biswas (Co-founder & CEO)

Pradeep Mallavarapu (Co-founder & CTO)

Often described as the ‘Uber for trucks,’ TruKKer has evolved into a full-stack digital freight network tackling the GCC's fragmented and analogue road logistics sector, valued at over $20 billion. Through its 'TruKKer Pulse' interface, it guarantees capacity, provides real-time pricing and tracking, and uses predictive algorithms to slash driver idle time by 20%+ while achieving a 99% on-time delivery rate. Its ambition extends far beyond matching; TruKKer is building an integrated ecosystem that includes Omnilog for multimodal transport, ATOMIX for sustainable electric trucking, and MoXey for driver fintech.

Nowlun (Founded in 2021)

📍 Egypt

⚙️ Digital freight-forwarding for ocean shipping

Moataz Khamis (Co-founder & CEO)

Mahmoud Khaled (Co-founder & CTO) Ahmed Emara (Co-founders & COO)

While others tackle the roads, Nowlun is streamlining the sea. Based in Egypt, this digital freight forwarder takes the archaic, phone-and-email process of booking international ocean freight and makes it instant. Though it doesn't deliver parcels to doorsteps, it ensures the very products that fill Middle Eastern warehouses and online shops arrive efficiently. The platform allows businesses to instantly compare and book ocean container shipping from global suppliers By using AI to bring transparency and speed to this traditionally opaque wholesale layer.

Torod (Founded in 2021)

📍 Saudi Arabia

⚙️ Data-driven courier orchestration and last-mile optimisation

Faisal Almaklas (Co-founder & CEO)

Ammar Almaatouq (Co-founder & CTO)

Founded in 2022 the platform acts as a single smart dashboard for e-commerce stores, aggregating and comparing services from multiple third-party couriers. It integrates directly with major store builders like Shopify, Zid, and WooCommerce, allowing merchants to manage shipping, tracking, and complex Cash-on-Delivery reconciliation from one interface.

Boxy (Founded in 2024)

📍 Iraq

⚙️ AI-powered aggregation of hyper-fragmented last-mile networks

Ahmed Baqer (Co-founder & CEO)

Mehrshad Pezeshk (Co-founder & CTO)

Boxy is tackling one of MENA's most fragmented last-mile markets with an AI-powered aggregator designed for the country's unique e-commerce landscape. Founded in 2024 and emerging from stealth in 2025 with a $1.5 million pre-seed round, Boxy unifies over 1,500 local couriers into a single intelligent platform. It uses a smart matching engine to route each order to the optimal carrier and specialises in integrating with social commerce channels like WhatsApp and Instagram; streamlining everything from pickups to complex Cash-on-Delivery payouts.

Quiqup (Founded in 2014)

📍 UAE

⚙️ On-demand last-mile and delivery services

Bassel El Koussa (Co-founder & CEO)

Tim Linssen (Co-founder)

Danny Hawkins (Co-founder)

Federico Ferraro (Co-founder)

Rami Idriss (Co-founder)

Based in the UAE with a strategic expansion into Saudi Arabia, Quiqup has evolved from an on-demand delivery pioneer into a full-stack e-commerce logistics powerhouse offering a comprehensive "store, pick, pack, and deliver" fulfilment solution, allowing brands to outsource their entire post-purchase operation. With a relentless focus on speed and reliability, including same-day delivery in Dubai, powering logistics for major names from Sephora to The Giving Movement.

Colis.ma (Founded in 2022)

📍 Morocco

⚙️ Parcel delivery aggregation and shipping for SMEs and individuals.

Issam Darui (Founder & CEO)

Colis.ma is the digital shipping aggregator simplifying cross-border e-commerce for local merchants. Its platform allows businesses and individuals to compare prices, book shipments, and track parcels across multiple carriers from a single dashboard. It specialises in providing affordable and reliable delivery routes from Morocco to Europe—a critical trade lane—effectively acting as a logistics hub that connects Moroccan online sellers to international markets. By integrating with major local e-commerce platforms and demystifying the export process, Colis.ma empowers a growing wave of merchants to scale their reach beyond national borders.

Freterium (Founded in 2020)

📍 Morocco

⚙️ Transport Management Software (TMS) for shippers and carriers.

Mehdi Cherif Alami (Co-founder & CEO)

Omar El Kouhene (Co-founder & CPO)

Freterium provides the intelligent software layer that powers the physical movement of goods for e-commerce across the Middle East and Africa. Its next-generation Transport Management System (TMS) acts as a central 'brain,' connecting retailers, distributors, and shipping partners on a single cloud platform to automate complex logistics like route optimisation and fleet planning. Having secured $4 million in seed funding and being crowned winner of DHL's prestigious Fast Forward Challenge in 2024, the startup delivers the real-time orchestration and data-driven insights that enable major brands to offer Amazon-level delivery efficiency.

ILLA (Founded in 2019)

📍 Egypt

⚙️ Middle-mile logistics optimisation for the Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) sector

Mahmoud El-Zomor (Co-founder & CEO)

Alaa Jarkas (Co-founder & Managing Director)

Ahmed Sakr (Co-founder & COO)

Hossam Saraya (Co-founder & CTO)

ILLA provides the specialised digital spine for the FMCG sector's critical "middle-mile" logistics—the complex journey from factory or warehouse to retail shelves. By digitising and aggregating a vast, varied fleet of trucks, its platform allows giants like Coca-Cola, Nestlé, and Pepsico to efficiently manage bulk deliveries across traditional and modern trade channels. While focused on B2B distribution, its optimisation of this essential supply chain layer ensures the consistent product availability that underpins the entire retail ecosystem, making it a vital, if less visible, engine of the region's broader consumption boom, including e-commerce.

Salasa (Founded in 2016)

📍 Saudi Arabia

⚙️ Tech-driven fulfilment and warehousing (Third-Party Logistics - 3PL).

Abdulmajeed Alyemni (Co-founder & CEO)

Hasan Alhazmi (Co-founder & CBO & COO)

Salasa is the comprehensive fulfilment colossus that lets e-commerce brands hand over their entire operational headache. Supercharged by a formidable $30 million Series B funding round, this tech-first platform offers a complete stack—from warehousing and inventory management to pick-and-pack and last-mile delivery across the Kingdom and beyond. With sophisticated offerings like AI-driven operations, hyperlocal dark stores enabling two-hour delivery in Riyadh, and bonded zones for frictionless cross-border trade, Salasa gives merchants the scale and reliability of an in-house logistics department without the capital outlay. Having processed over 25 million shipments for major players like Noon and Amazon, it has firmly established itself as the indispensable operational spine for the region's booming digital retail sector.

Shipa (Founded in 2017)

📍 Based in UAE/Kuwait

⚙️ Integrated, cross-border e-commerce logistics.

Borhene Ben Mena (Founder & CEO of Shipa Delivery)

Henadi Al-Saleh (Chairperson of the Agility Board of Directors, which launched Shipa)

Hassan Mikail (CEO of Shipa eCommerce)

Hemang Kapur (CEO of Shipa Freight)

Based in Kuwait as the innovation arm of the global logistics titan Agility, Shipa brings enterprise-grade supply chain capabilities to the region's ambitious SMEs. It acts as a single, powerful digital platform, offering a full-stack solution from cross-border e-commerce fulfilment and freight forwarding to last-mile delivery. By leveraging Agility's vast physical network and infrastructure, Shipa effectively democratises global trade, allowing smaller businesses to sell into fast-growing GCC markets and beyond with the ease and efficiency of a multinational.

Logidoo (Founded in 2019)

📍 Senegal/Morocco

⚙️ Pan-African digital logistics and cross-border e-commerce platform.

Tamsir Ousmane Traoré (Founder & CEO)

Based across Senegal and Morocco, Logidoo is the pan-African digital logistics marketplace building the connective tissue for the continent's burgeoning trade. It aggregates a vast network of over 3,000 carriers into a single platform, allowing businesses to book and manage cross-border freight across air, sea, and road. By creating streamlined digital corridors from Europe through Morocco into West Africa, Logidoo is turning the complex vision of the African Continental Free Trade Area into an operational reality, empowering e-commerce merchants with the fast, transparent, and affordable shipping essential for regional growth.

RedBox (Founded in 2019)

📍 Saudi Arabia

⚙️ The Self-Service Revolution: Smart Lockers as the New Delivery Destination

Thamer Altuwaiyan (Co-founder and CEO)

Zun Phan (Co-founder and CTO)

RedBox is reimagining the final touchpoint of e-commerce by building the region's leading network of smart, self-service parcel lockers. Its automated, 24/7 lockers, located in convenient public spaces, offer a secure and flexible alternative to traditional door-to-door delivery, effectively solving the chronic problem of missed deliveries. Having successfully delivered over 10 million parcels through a network of more than 1,800 points, RedBox partners with major platforms like Noon, Temu, DHL, and Aramex to streamline last-mile logistics. Notably, its model of consolidated drop-offs has achieved up to a 75% reduction in last-mile emissions.