Idriss Al Rifai, the founder of Fetchr, has big ambitions for his company. Satish Kumar / The National
Idriss Al Rifai, the founder of Fetchr, has big ambitions for his company. Satish Kumar / The National

Fetchr owner has dream of creating new verb



Have you always worked in e-commerce?

No. I studied international relations, economics and philosophy and played professional basketball on the side. Then I joined the Ministry of Defence in France as a civil servant. Later I joined the special forces carrying out fact-finding missions in 13 countries - I loved it. From there I joined a thinktank at the Ministry of Defence before doing an MBA, then joining Boston Consulting Group in Dubai and then moving into e-commerce.

What was your motivation for setting up - to get rich?

Getting rich is probably reason number 150 to get into entrepreneurship. If you look at the statistics the odds are against you. It’s difficult to make it work and even harder to get rich, particularly with your first venture because there is a lot you need to learn.The first reason is the frustration - there is this frustration and you want to prove yourself.

What are the three main drivers for your business?

The first is the growth of e-commerce because 90 per cent of our traffic is e-commerce. We deal with 800 e-commerce companies including the top 10 in the region. The second driver is having customers comfortable with using technology – if people still want to get phone calls, then Fetchr becomes like anyone else. What makes us different is that you have to want to share your GPS. Finally smartphone penetration. While Middle East smartphone penetration is the highest in the world, look at markets such as Kenya, Tanzania, Nigeria – the penetration rate is still very low but is growing very fast.

Who are your main competitors?

The traditional logistics companies - Fedex, DHL and Aramex. But again we need them for the cross border rights. We don’t want to own planes or custom clearance but none of these companies have focused on last-mile technology because they didn’t have to. They are massive machines and massive machines cannot move. They would rather acquire companies.

___________

Read more:

Generation Start-up: Funding was 'petrifying' in the early days, says Fetchr chief

Fetchr launches a faster delivery service

___________

What is your exit strategy?

The exit is either acquisition or IPO. IPO is a long road that takes three to five years but acquisition is very likely considering the level of interest we have - whether it’s from local GCC families or big private equity funds in the US and UK. We’ve already had two offers for buy out: the first before the series A round for the technology and the second was during the series B which was the wrong timing. We feel we can be 20 times as big so until then I would feel extremely frustrated if I sell the company. Anyway it’s a shareholder decision, not only mine.

What advice would you give yourself if you were starting again?

To enjoy the journey otherwise it is just a journey of frustration. That frustration is the key force driving an entrepreneur but then you tend not to celebrate the milestones.

What is your next big dream?

To make Fetchr a verb; 'let's Fetchr it' like 'let's Google it'.

Jigra
Director: Vasan Bala
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
Rated: 3.5/5
Bib%20Gourmand%20restaurants
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Company%20Profile
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
 
Started: 2020
 
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
 
Based: Dubai, UAE
 
Sector: Entertainment 
 
Number of staff: 210 
 
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Joker: Folie a Deux

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson

Director: Todd Phillips 

Rating: 2/5

Four%20scenarios%20for%20Ukraine%20war
%3Cp%3E1.%20Protracted%20but%20less%20intense%20war%20(60%25%20likelihood)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E2.%20Negotiated%20end%20to%20the%20conflict%20(30%25)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E3.%20Russia%20seizes%20more%20territory%20(20%25)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E4.%20Ukraine%20pushes%20Russia%20back%20(10%25)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cem%3EForecast%20by%20Economist%20Intelligence%20Unit%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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Sri Lanka v England

First Test, at Galle
England won by 211

Second Test, at Kandy
England won by 57 runs

Third Test, at Colombo
From Nov 23-27

Tree of Hell

Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla

Director: Raed Zeno

Rating: 4/5

Moon Music

Artist: Coldplay

Label: Parlophone/Atlantic

Number of tracks: 10

Rating: 3/5

EA Sports FC 25
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Company Profile

Company name: NutriCal

Started: 2019

Founder: Soniya Ashar

Based: Dubai

Industry: Food Technology

Initial investment: Self-funded undisclosed amount

Future plan: Looking to raise fresh capital and expand in Saudi Arabia

Total Clients: Over 50

MATCH INFO

England 241-3 (20 ovs)

Malan 130 no, Morgan 91

New Zealand 165 all out (16.5ovs)

Southee 39, Parkinson 4-47

England win by 76 runs

Series level at 2-2

MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg result:

Ajax 2-3 Tottenham

Tottenham advance on away goals rule after tie ends 3-3 on aggregate

Final: June 1, Madrid

Company%20profile
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Company%20Profile
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Abu Dhabi traffic facts

Drivers in Abu Dhabi spend 10 per cent longer in congested conditions than they would on a free-flowing road

The highest volume of traffic on the roads is found between 7am and 8am on a Sunday.

Travelling before 7am on a Sunday could save up to four hours per year on a 30-minute commute.

The day was the least congestion in Abu Dhabi in 2019 was Tuesday, August 13.

The highest levels of traffic were found on Sunday, November 10.

Drivers in Abu Dhabi lost 41 hours spent in traffic jams in rush hour during 2019

 


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