Agroshift raises $1.8M pre-seed funding

Agroshift, a Bangladeshi agri-tech that enables businesses to source directly from farmers, has raised $1.8M in funding, making it the largest-ever pre-seed round for any Bangladeshi startup to date, says a press release.  

The round was co-led by UAE-based Shorooq Partners, a leading technology investor in the Middle East, along with Anchorless Bangladesh, a New York-based early-stage venture capital firm active in the local startup ecosystem. 

The round also had participation from other global investors like Julian Shapiro, founder of Demand Curve, Ratio Ventures, Sketchnote Partners & Sabr Capital. 

Founded in March 2022 by Qazi Bouland, Rameez Hoque, and Diptha Saha, Agroshift is building a digital platform to transform the agricultural supply chain of Bangladesh. 

It helps farmers sell their products to businesses and consumers by merging the physical and digital worlds for a "phy-gital" business model –– for demand aggregation, sourcing, and delivery. 

Agroshift works directly with farmers and traders in a micro-fulfillment model to source daily needs like vegetables, fruits, grains, and meat. This enables RMG workers to get direct access to high-quality and affordable fresh produce. Using the same infrastructure, Agroshift is also supplying the surrounding micro-retailers of these factories. 

Thrilled with the investment from prominent regional investors, Qazi Bouland said, "By 2030, Bangladesh will become the 9th largest consumer market in the world, creating an urgent need for high-quality and fresher food. Agroshift is poised to solve this critical problem at the right juncture in the country's growth." 

"Our unique model eliminates the need for traditional retail touchpoints, instead leveraging a combination of digital ordering kiosks and lean drop-off points within factory premises. This plug & play digital grocery solution for workers is getting appreciation from factory management due to savings, access to quality food, and overall improvement in worker wellbeing," added Rameez Hoque, on how Agroshift is set to leverage the tech to digitize one of the conventional industries in Bangladesh. 

"We're excited to back Agroshift in their vision to serve millions of people working in the agri and textile sectors across Bangladesh. Agroshift's customers are the driving force behind these sizable economic sectors and we're humbled to support the team's ambition", said Omer Zabit, Principal at Shorooq Partners.

"Anchorless is thrilled to partner with Agroshift. Agriculture is one of the cornerstones of the Bangladeshi economy—with over $40 billion of output—and Agroshift's micrologistics model is the most effective we have seen in helping drive value for both producers and consumers—especially those in one of the country's most valuable sectors: garments workers. While Bangladesh has already built a significant role in international supply chains, we also see tremendous opportunity in domestic supply chain optimization. Especially in the current environment as some consumers struggle with rising costs, what Agroshift is building is tremendously valuable for customers and the country", said Rahat Ahmed, founding partner, and CEO at Anchorless Bangladesh.

The founders at Agroshift have a collective global experience in agriculture, technology, engineering, and finance with backgrounds ranging from scaling previous startups, leading large teams in fortune 500 companies, and running agricultural ventures.