South Africa’s Zulzi seeks funds to expand dark store network

Dark stores are warehouses from which customers can order fresh food, alcohol and over-the-counter medication online.

Zulzi, which started in 2016, currently has three such stores in Johannesburg and Pretoria. Valoyi plans to open five new dark stores in Cape Town and four in Durban in the next two to three months, irrespective of the fundraising, he says from Johannesburg.

Raising the money, which could be done through a mixture of debt and equity financing, would allow the company to reach its target of 50 rented dark stores nationwide, including in smaller South African cities, by the end of the year. Valoyi aims to raise the money in the next three months.