Chpter, a Kenyan e-commerce startup founded by the team behind Marketforce, has raised $1.2 million in a pre-seed funding round. The funds will be utilized to improve its technology and facilitate expansion into Egypt and Nigeria. Chpter aims to help businesses leverage social media as an effective sales platform rather than just a marketing tool.
The company provides tools for chat, orders, and payments, charging clients a monthly subscription fee along with a transaction fee for payments processed through its platform. Among its clientele are notable names like insurer Britam, shoe store Kicks Kenya, and e-commerce platform Phoneplace. Currently, Chpter operates in Kenya and South Africa.
The funding round was spearheaded by Pani, an Africa-focused investment firm co-founded by Ken Njoroge, the former CEO of Cellulant. Other contributors include Plesion Capital, Techstars, Norrsken, Renew Capital, ViKtoria Ventures, and angel investors like Nala founder and CEO Benjamin Fernandes, along with Workpay co-founders Paul Kimani and Jackson Kibigo.
This funding is a strong vote of confidence in Chpter, a young startup with ambitious goals. The company was established while two of its co-founders were still managing Marketforce, a YC-backed Kenyan e-commerce platform previously valued at over $100 million.
Chpter’s inclusion in the Norrsken Accelerator in 2023 and the Safaricom Spark Accelerator in May 2024 has positioned it as a significant player in the conversational commerce space.
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