Саудовский стартап Raff привлек 1,7 млн долларов для цифровизации связей брендов и розничной торговли

Raff raises $1.7 million to bridge online brands with physical retail - Saudi Arabia-based retailtech startup Raff has raised $1.7 million in a pre-seed round led by Vision Ventures, with participation from 500 Global, Palm VC, Oqal Group, Salla co-founder Salman Butt and other investors. - Founded in 2024 by Ali Al Qudah and Abdul Kareem Munla, Raff operates a technology platform that connects consumer brands with retailers, digitising distribution, inventory management, order fulfilment, payments and other commercial operations. - The funding will be used to support Raff’s expansion across the GCC, accelerate product development and strengthen its AI capabilities. Press release: Raff, a Saudi-based technology platform simplifying distribution and inventory management by connecting consumer brands directly with retailers, today announced the closing of its $1.7 million pre-seed funding round, led by Vision Ventures, with participation from 500 Global, Palm VC, Oqal Group, Salman Butt (Co-founder of Salla), among others. The funding will support Raff's regional expansion across the GCC while accelerating product development and AI capabilities as the company continues to simplify how consumer brands expand into physical retail. Digital platforms and marketplaces have made it easier for consumer brands across the GCC to launch and grow online. However, expanding into offline retail remains a fragmented, time-consuming, and expensive process, requiring separate onboarding, logistics, and commercial relationships with each retailer. The opportunity is massive, with the GCC retail market valued at more than $300 billion a year. Raff addresses this challenge through an end-to-end platform that digitises distribution, commercial operations, inventory management, order fulfilment, and payments, making it easier for brands to expand their presence across physical retail channels. For retailers, the platform automates key workflows and simplifies the management of a growing vendor network, while integrating with leading point-of-sale and accounting software in the region, allowing them to spend more time growing their businesses. The startup was founded in 2024 by Ali Al Qudah and Abdul Kareem Munla, bringing together experience across e-commerce, technology, finance, and business operations. Al Qudah previously built and scaled two e-commerce brands before joining Saudi e-commerce company Salla as an early employee and later serving as Head of Growth at legal-tech startup Qanoniah. Munla brings more than 20 years of experience in financial management and business operations, spanning financial transformation, governance, compliance, and operational efficiency across multiple sectors. Ali Al Qudah, Co-Founder and CEO of Raff, said: "We built Raff after experiencing firsthand how difficult it was for growing brands to move beyond online sales. While the barriers to launching an e-commerce business have never been lower, reaching customers through physical retail still requires brands to navigate multiple operational and commercial hurdles. Our mission is to simplify that journey and give brands a faster and more efficient way to reach offline customers. This investment enables us to accelerate that vision, expand across the GCC, and continue building the infrastructure powering the next generation of retail." Kais Al-Essa, Founding Partner and CEO of Vision Ventures, added: "We are excited to partner with Ali and the Raff team as they represent the caliber of high-execution talent that we look for. We previously supported the shift from offline to online through our early investment in Salla. Today, we see an equally significant opportunity as brands look to expand from online into physical retail. Raff is solving a high-friction challenge at the intersection of retail technology and logistics, creating a new efficiency layer for commerce across the region. We are proud to lead this round and support the team's ambitious vision." Since launching less than 18 months ago, Raff has enabled more than 900 brands across nine countries, spanning the GCC and the UK, to grow their presence through physical retail channels.