Snoonu is Qatar’s fastest growing startup and has acquired five million orders on their app since launching in 2020.

Snoonu, Qatar’s leading technology company, has announced its acquisition of popular Omani delivery platform Akeed for $10 million. This is the startup’s first purchase outside of Qatar as it pushes into the Omani market. 

“Our acquisition of Akeed was a decision made based on the company’s stellar reputation as one of the leading food delivery platforms in our sisterly Sultanate of Oman,”Al Hajri told Doha News.

“Akeed’s wide network of restaurants and grocery stores will enable us to establish a solid foothold in the Omani market as our initial step towards an expanded regional presence and involvement.”

The news came during the Snoonu Gala, where members of the executive management from both companies, and high-profile delegates, notable stakeholders, and leading figures from the local and regional business and entrepreneurial sectors, were in attendance.

“This amazing milestone is quite exciting for us because it reinforces our efforts towards becoming Qatar’s first ever tech Unicorn. We owe it to the country and its visionary leadership to continue to seek growth around the world and to contribute towards the fulfilment of Qatar’s national vision of 2030,” he added.

A privately held startup company with a valuation of over $1 billion is referred to as a “unicorn” in the venture capital industry.

The new agreement is part of Snoonu’s overall strategy to expand its network to new countries.

The deal will strengthen Snoonu’s position in the tech industry, while also supporting the company’s strategic aims of diversifying and extending its activities across the region.

Snoonu, according to statistics, maintains a fleet of over 2,000 riders to provide a rapid and affordable delivery service across Qatar.

Their extended coverage allows merchants to reach out to previously untapped areas and client demographics that live as far as 25 kilometres from wherever they’re ordering.

Their gross merchandise volume has increased dramatically since last year, with the company seeing a six-fold spike between 2020 and 2021.

Snoonu was a classroom project back in 2016 by the founder and CEO Hamad Al Hajri and Co-Founder Saud Al Attiyah, which won HEC Paris’ Best Capstone Project Award. In January 2019, this vision started to become a reality as a small team gathered in a garage office.

The company was not always called ‘Snoonu’, as the company’s initial name was ‘Mshwar’, and its official colour was purple. However two months later, the iconic Snoonu logo and colours that many recognise became the official branding of the company.

This marked the start of their journey as the first home business delivery and personal assistant company in Qatar.

The application was officially launched in October 2019. However, with the start of the ongoing pandemic, the beginning of 2020 posed a real challenge and provided a need for the company’s offered services.

The Qatari startup secured $5 million in Series A funding in April 2021. Snoonu plans to continue its growth and launch the Series B round in 2022, seeking $35 million in investments, with the goal of launching its IPO by 2024 and diversifying what it offers.

Series A financing is an investment in a privately held start-up company that has demonstrated progress in developing its business model and its ability to grow and generate revenue. 

After a company has had time to generate revenue from sales, Series B financing is the next stage of funding. Investors can assess the management team’s performance and determine whether the investment is worthwhile.