Beirut-based beauty ecommerce startup Feel22 raises Series A to expand to Jordan, Iraq and Syria

Lebanese beauty ecommerce startup has raised Series A funding round, the startup announced in a statement to MENAbytes last week, without disclosing the size of the investment. The investment round that was closed late last year came from Equitrust, investment arm of leading media conglomerate of the region Choueiri Group, and some other private investors.

Founded in 2016 by Maurice Mattar and Darine Sabbagh, Feel22 sells a wide selection of makeup, haircare, skincare, perfume, and other beauty products from over 400 brands on its website. The startup claims to have over 20,000 products available on its platform right now that are being sold and delivered all across the country.

According to its website, Feel22 offers free delivery and free returns for all its products on the website. The startup also claims to have 100% certified and original products bought from official distributors of the brands. “We work either directly or in collaboration with the majority of the top distributors and brands in the country,” Feel22 notes on its website.

Darine Sabbagh, co-founder and CMO of Feel22, speaking to MENAbytes said that they will use the investment to further fortify their leadership position in Lebanon and expand to Iraq by launching there next month and Jordan in the third quarter.

“There is a lot of untapped potential in ecommerce in the Levant region. We are also enhancing our tech stack, mobile solutions and analytical dashboards and scaling up across all internal capacities including operations and logistics,” she noted.

The startup also palns to enter Syria as well in 2019.

Maurice Mattar, Co-founder and CEO of Feel22, said, “We are excited to replicate our success in new markets along-side like-minded investors. It’s just the right time. The beauty and personal care market is expected to keep growing over the next 5 years and according to our estimations, already accounts for over $1 billion in the Levant.”

Patrick Thiriet, Chief Strategy Officer of Choueiri Group, said, “Beauty is one of the most exciting e-commerce opportunities in the MENA region, where online platforms can offer consumers a unique combination of choice, convenience and price.”

“Feel22 has quickly emerged as a leading player in the Lebanese market and is now ready to scale up its model across other Levant countries, where customers deserve a better beauty experience. We are looking forward to helping them in this journey,” he added.

According to the statement, Feel22 has made over a million dollar in revenues since it was launched in late 2016. The startup also has partnerships with some of the leading players in the beauty space including L’Oreal Group.

The investments in niche ecommerce platforms have been on the rise lately. Many of them raised significant amounts of money last year with Boutiqaat, the Kuwait-based beauty ecommerce platform Boutiqaat and Dubai-based baby products ecommerce startup Mumzworld leading the pack.