South African parcel shipping platform, TUNL, has secured $1 million in pre-seed funding from investors including Founders Factory Africa, Digital Africa Ventures, E4E Africa, and Jozi Angels.
TUNL, founded in 2022 by CEO Matthew Davey and COO Craig Lowman, aims to enhance cross-border shipping for e-commerce merchants. The platform, claiming to save merchants between 50% and 80% on international shipping costs, plans to utilise the funding to expand within its primary market, South Africa, and prepare for launch in other key African and emerging markets.
CEO Matthew Davey, inspired by challenges faced in importing South African engineering materials into Europe, founded TUNL to address the widespread issue of high shipping costs, particularly for smaller businesses in emerging markets. The company’s mission is to mitigate the estimated $50 billion annual cost incurred by African businesses due to current challenges in cross-border shipping.
TUNL has formed partnerships with courier services such as UPS and FedEx, securing favorable rates and subsidising SMEs’ shipping costs by 50% to 75%. The platform enables merchants to offer various shipping options during checkout, including an “economy” option with shipping costs included in the product price, allowing free shipping via TUNL’s courier service.
The company has experienced significant growth, with a 35% month-on-month increase since its launch. Over 700 merchants are now part of its “shipping club,” and the platform has facilitated the shipment of over 8,000 international parcels in 2023. TUNL plans to enhance sales and the onboarding process for new merchants with the seed funding. Monthly revenue is currently approximately $60,000.
The platform also aims to further streamline its services, focusing on merchant success and international growth. It seeks to empower merchants to tap into larger consumer markets overseas, signalling a positive impact on the ecosystem.
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