1Export, a tech-enabled exporting company based in the Philippines, has raised a $820,000 or nearly PHP41 million seed round to scale their technology and expand to Indonesia. The funding was led by Foxmont Capital Partners—a Philippine venture capital that invests in Filipino-focused or Filipino-founded early stage technology startups—and included participation from Manila Angel Investors Network, Iterative, IdeaSpace Foundation, and other angel investors.
With the new investments, 1Export aims to develop and improve its financing processes, marketing services, Shopify integration, and seamless compliance documents processing within its platform. Its overall revenue of $450,000 or PHP22.4 million and service availability in 26 countries warranted interest from the investors.
“Businesses all over the world are evolving at a rapid pace, even amidst a global crisis, thanks to technology. It’s time that businesses in the Philippines, especially micro, small, and medium enterprises, keep up with this digital transformation as well,” said Mel Nava, founder and CEO of 1Export. “The latest seed round will help us at 1Export scale up our tech platform and services to ultimately support Filipinos MSMEs, contribute to Philippine exports, and create a distinctly Filipino footprint in other markets.”
1Export was founded in 2016 to help MSMEs in the Philippines grow their business and expand in different countries using digital tools and platforms. In June 2021, the company generated around $500,000 or PHP25 million in export sales, accounting for 0.2% of the total Philippine exports. It currently lists 450 supplier partners on its platform and distributes an overall volume of 4,000 tonnes of products, which are a mix of food and non-food products. 1Export plans to expand to 60 countries by the end of 2022.
More than just an e-commerce or logistics platform, 1Export vets Filipino products to be cross-border compliant, allowing local businesses to follow the laws of the market they want to explore or expand to. The company also offers all-around exporting services such as compliance documentation, product labeling, logistics, export facilitation, and intensive business matching, which helps local businesses identify which of their products fit certain markets. 1Export’s comprehensive services help reduce time and costs by 80% for exporting.
On another hand, 1Export’s business-to-business-to-consumer venture, Caravan, provides business opportunities for Filipinos living and working abroad. When choosing which products to sell, they only need to select goods listed on Caravan’s catalogue and the company will handle the rest.
“Our goal is to help Filipinos all over the world start and run a business, selling products that they’re proud of without having to go through the complexities of exporting. We’re glad we’re able to do so through our tech platforms over the past five years. We’re ready to accelerate our operations and improve our solutions so that we can aid more Filipino entrepreneurs, even during a global pandemic,” said Nava.
ABOUT 1EXPORT
1Export Trade and Services is an online platform helping businesses export better. Founded in the Philippines in 2016, 1Export assists small and medium businesses with various country requirements (such as labeling, documentation, etc.) so that they could export to their desired countries, without losing focus from their core business. 1Export also connects small and medium businesses to distributors worldwide, assuring global purchasers of a roster of export-compliant suppliers.
