Exclusive: Pakistani baby products ecommerce platform Baby Planet raises $250,000 led by High Output Ventures

Baby Planet, a Lahore-based online retailer for baby products has raised $250,000 in a seed round, it told MENAbytes today. The round was led by Singapore-based High Output Ventures who have recently also launched an accelerator program to invest in Pakistani startups. This particular investment, however, was made from their seed arm (not the accelerator).

Pakistan-focused VC Karavan also participated in the round along with US-based Virtual Force and some other angels from the Middle East.

Founded in 2014 by Irfan Ahmed, Baby Planet sells baby products ranging from wipes and diapers to strollers and cribs, through its online platform. The platform, Baby Planet, has told MENAbytes currently features over 5,000 SKUs and ships these products all over Pakistan offering free shipping on orders above PKR 1,500 (about $9).

The startup declined to share its exact sales number but has told MENAbytes that it has a seven-figure (USD) annual GMV. It also said that it has witnessed a big spike in its sales since the start of the pandemic in February.

Irfan Ahmed, the founder and CEO of Baby Planet said that they will use the investment to scale across Pakistan and accelerate their growth, “It will help us further solidify our position as one of the leading baby products online retailer in the country.”

Baby Planet also plans to use a part of the investment to launch its mobile apps for iOS and Android.

Usman Sheikh, the Managing Director of High Output Ventures, said, “Irfan has built the foundations for a company that stands to be one of the leading baby e-commerce companies in Pakistan. We look forward to supporting him in achieving that goal.”

Meenah Tariq, a Partner at Karavan, said, “Irfan is a resilient and home-grown entrepreneur. He has a deep understanding of his sector and is constantly trying to improve. We are proud to have him and Baby Planet be a part of Karavan.”

Correction – Aug 27, 2020 – 11:20 AM GMT: A previous version of this article citing the information provided by the startup mistakenly noted that they have eight-figure (USD). It is seven-figure (USD). The article has been updated to reflect this.