Saudi’s Tamer Group acquires majority stake in UAE’s Mumzworld

Saudi Arabia’s Tamer Group will acquire a majority stake in UAE’s Mumzworld, a mother, baby and child (MBC) e-commerce platform, it was announced on June 28.

Mumzworld has signed a sales and purchase agreement with Tamer – a regional healthcare distributor – for the same, describing it as the first “regional woman-led ecommerce transaction.”Financial details remains undisclosed.

The e-commerce platform, founded in late 2011, hosts a regional community of 2.5 million mothers, is a partner for over 5,500 global and regional brands and 250,000 products as well as the exclusive distributor of over 15,000 international products. Mumzworld will retain the full management team and its branding.

The transaction will give Mumzworld access to a pool of capital to foster its growth. Tamer will also help further institutionalise the business, and use its portfolio companies to spur the platform’s organic growth. Tamer’s annual turnover is SAR9.2bn with a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 11 per cent.

The regional MBC market is worth over $10bn, with the online segment growing approximately 39 per cent per year, yet online penetration remains in the single digits, a statement said. Factors such as a young population, strong birth rates, strong purchasing power and digitised consumers will continue to drive growth in the online segment particularly in Saudi Arabia.

Mona Ataya, CEO of Mumzworld, said: “We are delighted to join the Tamer Group, having created the Middle East’s largest female-led e-commerce business. We have recorded 10x growth over the last five years, and this is just the beginning for us. We are better positioned than ever to accelerate growth, drive wider geographic expansion and continue to build a tech footprint serving customers better than ever. We will continue to own the supply chain for mother and child; both our customers and suppliers are at the forefront of this next exciting phase for Mumzworld.

“We are intent on digitising the regional ecosystem, particularly in Saudi Arabia. With Tamer Group’s scale, size, reputation and regional knowhow – our combined complementary entity will be transformative for the region.”

“We believe that e-commerce is the future for the GCC. As a major player in the FMCG space, e-commerce is no longer an option, but a necessity,” noted Ayman Tamer, chairman of Tamer Group. “The world has shifted to a customer-centric model with consumer behaviours, trends and data having become the new gold. Players in the space need to understand their customers, and adapt to their changing needs. Mumzworld will be a steppingstone towards “Tamer Digital” – a very ambitious vertical we intend to build to serve the nation, working towards delivering on Saudi’s Vision 2030.”