CHIL Food Center, trading as Solerchil Technologies, has raised USD$300,000 (approx. UGX1.2 billion) in pre-seed to support its mission of revolutionizing B2B payments. The round was led by Sufishent LLC and comes at the time when the company is expanding its service offering to support business operations.
“We understand that trade credit is critical to supply chains, and Solerchil Technologies is solving this problem. That is why we are happy to be part of this and hope to lead even more rounds,” Richard Scott Johnson, a partner investor at Sufishent LLC said in a press statement.
The company noted that the proceeds of the pre-seed funding will be used towards further developing its digital credit technology and extending its services across Africa, Europe, and the Middle East, supporting the growth of the B2B commerce space. In addition, it plans to recruit more staff for its Lille and Dubai offices and is on the verge of raising USD$15 million (approx. UGX58.2 billion) in a seed round.
CHIL Food Center is a B2B AI-powered conversational eCommerce platform that simplifies the supply chain directly with food suppliers and food retailers in Europe, and the Middle East & Africa. It allows food retailers to purchase the food they need to retail and pay later through a frictionless B2C-like “Buy Now Pay Later” checkout experience while paying the supplier upfront.
The solution can be integrated easily via APIs into existing e-commerce platforms and marketplaces.
Shamim Nabuuma Kaliisa, a co-founder and shareholder in Solerchil Technologies, says that the B2B merchants that use Chil Food Center will now be able to sell more by offering better payment terms to their business customers.
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“Our Buy Now, Pay Later solution eliminates all the burden and risk associated with offering payment terms online by letting B2B merchants instantly offer credit terms at checkout even if the customer is buying from them for the first time,” said Nabuuma.
Currently, CHIL Food Center has over 300 merchants making use of the Buy Now Pay Later solution, and thousands of buyers transacting on the platform.
Merchants using CHIL Food Center will also see an increase in their revenue and customer satisfaction. Nabuuma says the platform is able to protect them against the risks of non-payment, so they are always sure to get paid no matter what.
Solerchil Technologies is a female-led food tech company that makes and rents solar-powered cold rooms to farmers and food market vendors to safely preserve their unsold food for a longer time. The company then links these to buyers who are ready to buy the unsold food that is in good condition for consumption at half price. This avails those who may not afford to buy expensive food a chance to have a meal by ordering through the Solerchil AI conversational eCommerce chatbot accessible on WhatsApp, Facebook, and SMS platforms.
The company was developed after its founders realized there was an increase in food wastage during the Covid-19 Pandemic lockdowns since farmers and food market vendors could hardly get people to buy their produce.
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