Angolan food delivery startup Tupuca is planning on adding new features and expanding to neighbouring countries having seen solid uptake since its launch.
Founded in 2015, Tupuca is Angola’s first food delivery platform, allowing users to order from multiple restaurants straight from their smartphone.
The startup – which recently won the Angolan leg of the Seedstars World competition – has 120 restaurants signed up to the platform and has a little over 20,000 users.
“Luanda has over two million people with the purchase power to use our service. So we haven’t even scratched the surface yet. Our goal is continue adding reasons for people to use our services,” Tupuca chief executive officer (CEO) Erickson Mvezi told Disrupt Africa.
“Currently, we are preparing for phase two, which is adding grocery and pharmacy deliveries. They will be available next year for our customers. Our goal is to provide convenience to all of our customers by providing an all-in-one platform.”
Tupuca is also planning on expanding to neighbouring countries as it consolidates the local market.
“Lately, we have been getting solicitations to replicate the model in other territories by franchising, which is something interesting to always consider,” Mvezi said.
He said Tupuca was launched in a bid to offer Angolans more comfort and convenience when ordering food.
“We realised that people living in Luanda had a difficult time going around to pick up food and other essentials. Tupuca has validated many assumptions in the delivery industry in Angola. Many people were skeptical about the readiness of the market,” Mvezi said.
“Tupuca came and delivered. We are aware that many will come, but our focus is on guaranteeing quality service, setting the market trend by introducing new services, and inspiring and empowering young entrepreneurs across Africa.”
The startup – which charges a commission on orders made via its platform – has been bootstrapped thus far, but Mvezi said it is seeking investment in order to grow.
“We have been blessed to have a great supporting cast that has been allowing us to learn from our mistakes and continue building a solid customer base. We have a few landmarks that we are proud of. We have managed to cover all of the key territories that we had targeted in Luanda and break even while doing so,” he said.
“We are looking to raise funds to continue to add different services to our platform and expedite the franchise model in neighbouring countries that lack this type of service.”
