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Malaysia-based startup Flower Chimp raises US$1.5M to expand florist service in Southeast Asia

Malaysia-based startup Flower Chimp raises US$1.5M to expand florist service in Southeast Asia

The company is already present in three markets, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines

Malaysia-based online florist Flower Chimp has raised RM6 million (US$1.5 million) from investors including Asia Venture Group (AVG), a firm with strong ties and investments in consumer-oriented firms such as iPrice and HappyFresh.

The company plans to use the newly-raised funding to strengthen its foothold In Indonesia and Philippines, add features to its platform such as live order tracking, and expand to new markets in Southeast Asia. Flower Chimp said it will launch in Singapore by the end of this month and is eyeing an expansion to Vietnam, Thailand and Hong Kong in 2019.

Founded by two German entrepreneurs, Maximilian Lotz and Niklas Frassa, in 2016, the startup aims to deliver “high-quality flowers at affordable prices.” The pair cut their teeth in the floral industry in the Netherlands, which is the world’s top exporter for flowers (dominating half of the flower export market).

In a press release, Lotz claimed that the company has grown fivefold since 2017.

Also Read: Malaysia’s online flower and gifting startup 50Gram gets seed funding from TBV Capital

“We aim to enhance our branding and become the top-of-mind for our customers to look forward to as they become more tech-savvy every day. We are confident that in the next twelve months; from Q4 2018 to Q4 2019, Flower Chimp will grow three times over with contributions from all four major markets namely Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines,” he said.

Flower Chimp claimed it has shipped a “high five-digit number of orders recording hundreds of orders from across countries on a daily basis to date, of which Malaysia currently contributes the largest share.”

In Malaysia, Flower Chimp covers more than 80 districts across Malaysia, including in Sabah and Sarawak. It delivers flowers starting from RM89 (US$21) with no added delivery charge and no minimum spend. Customers can also arrange for the same day delivery for any orders made before 1 pm.

Flower Chimp faces a whole host of competitors who are jostling for a significant market share in a niche and saturated industry. These companies include Singapore’s A Better Florist, Far East Flora and Happy Bunch, and Malaysia’s The Love Florist, BloomThis, 50Gram and Bloom2u.

When questioned by e27, the company said that while it is operating in a competitive market, it is not saturated yet. Flower Chimp said it differentiates itself by “leveraging highly on business intelligence to develop and offer unique, high-quality flowers at attractive price points that won’t burn a hole in your pocket.”

“It is our ongoing mission to build a dense network of fulfilment centres and highly reliable partner vendors to set highest standards across countries. We achieve this with the help of our seasoned operations team with decades of combined experiences in the flower industry,”

“Last but not least, operating a flower delivery company as a regional brand with several functions centralised in Malaysia enables us to enjoy cost efficiencies that directly translate into lower prices for our customers.”

Image Credit: Flower Chimp

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