Ho Chi Minh City-based e-commerce services provider Intrepid has closed a $2-million funding round that ascribes the group a post-money valuation of $9 million.
Co-founded by Christopher Beselin (former CEO of Lazada Vietnam) and Khang Chim (former National Sales Director of Lazada Vietnam), Intrepid partners with retailers, distributors and brands to manage and optimize their e-commerce sales and presence on online marketplaces throughout Southeast Asia.
Its services cover account management, customer experience, content creation and optimization, campaign strategy and management, business analytics and market consultation.
In an announcement, the startup said the latest funding will primarily be used for rapid expansion across the region and has been led by a group of Swedish family offices.
Intrepid was founded as a spin-off from the Swedish venture builder Fram and currently has operations in Vietnam, where it claims to be cashflow breakeven, and Hong Kong. Meanwhile, Philippines has been determined as the first country for the company’s expansion.
“This (funding) will allow us to widen our footprint and continue to help Southeast Asian retailers, distributors and brands to succeed in e-commerce. Foremost, this is a receipt of the successful hard work of the Intrepid team and the value that our customers see in our services, which ultimately is what drives our model forward,” said Christopher Beselin, Chairman of Intrepid E-commerce Services Group.
“We aspire to become the ‘Baozun of South East Asia’ and our incredible 40+ strong team in Ho Chi Minh City is set to get there as soon as possible,” said Intrepid co-founder and CEO Khang Chim.
The success of Lazada in Vietnam ushered in hordes of e-commerce firms that compete with each other for market share. These include Tiki.vn, Adayroi.vn, Sendo.vn, Shopee.vn, Robins.vn (previously Zalora.vn), and most recently, Lotte.vn.
As each e-commerce platform launched their marketplaces, tens of thousands of retailers flocked to these platforms in the hopes of cashing in on the boom and increasing their revenues.
According to Vietnam E-commerce Association, the country’s e-commerce market grew 25 per cent last year and is expected to maintain its growth in the next three years. Revenue growth in online retail channels in 2017 increased 35 per cent compared to 2016. Revenue from online retail is forecast to hit $10 billion by 2020, accounting for 5 per cent of the country’s retail market.
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