Vipi Radio
Kenyan based B2B e-commerce startup ZUMI is shutting down due to its inability to secure the necessary funding to continue its operations.
The company will be laying off its team of 150 employees, many of whom have prior experience at well-known companies such as Amazon and SpaceX.
Zumi’s co-founder and CEO, William McCarren, announced the closure in a LinkedIn post, citing the challenging fundraising environment and the company’s inability to achieve sustainability in time to survive.
CO founder Sabrina Dorman also shared the news in a LinkedIn post,
Today I, and my co-founders share the sad news that ZUMI is closing. ZUMI’s marketplace gave a full suite of ecommerce services to thousands of apparel merchants, including order and inventory management, delivery and financial services.
Like many other start-ups, we entered the race between funding, profitability and the clock. In our race, the clock won out.
Sabrina Dorman / LinkedIn
Zumi had previously started as a women-focused digital magazine in 2016 but shut down shortly after announcing its plans to pivot to e-commerce.
The company’s departure leaves room for competitors such as MarketForce and Sabi.
