PH e-commerce juggernaut Great Deals raises $30m from Fast Group, CVC, Navegar

Great Deals E-commerce Corporation, an e-commerce enabler in the Philippines, announced raising $30 million in its Series B funding round backed by logistics firm Fast Group, private equity firm CVC Capital Partners, and local investor Navegar.

The fresh capital will be used to construct an automated state-of-the-art fulfilment centre and further boost the startup’s tech development. These two are critical to meet growing demand in e-commerce and to level up the game in customer experience, Great Deals said in a statement.

CVC Capital Partners owns 40 per cent of Fast Group, one of the largest logistics companies in the Philippines. Navegar, on the other hand, is an existing investor in Great Deals, having infused $12 million Series A fund into the startup in 2020.

Steve Sy founded Great Deals in 2014 after spending many years as an entrepreneur in the retail and e-commerce sectors. He identified a stark need to enable entrepreneurs like himself to succeed in this new space.

The startup offers end-to-end business solutions ranging from digital marketing, content creation, storefront management, web design, business analytics, and customer service to warehousing and peak-scaling fulfillment.

“We recognize that Philippine logistics is by far the toughest across the ASEAN region and remains to impede our e-Commerce penetration outside GMA (the capital). With this funding and strategic support from our new investors, this opens new opportunities to drive forward Instant Commerce – delivery under one hour, wherever you are,” Sy said.

The funding agreements were signed early this week by Sy; William Chiongbian II, Group President and CEO of Fast Group; and Javier Infante, Managing Partner of Navegar.

Commenting on the investment, Chiongbian said: “The Fast Group sees a lot of synergies with Great Deals in building capability. We are privileged to contribute to the growth of Philippine e-commerce, as it relies heavily on a strong supply chain backbone.