Saudi Parcel Locker Firm RedBox Notches $5M in Series A

RedBox, a smart parcel locker provider based in Saudi Arabia, has raised $5 million in a Series A funding round.

As Magnitt reported Wednesday (May 25), the company works with last-mile services and allows customers to collect shipments from lockers in 18 cities throughout the Kingdom, as well as COD and instant return services.

“This investment will support the achievement of the company’s strategic goals in developing its solutions and improving the customer experience,” RedBox CEO and Co-founder Dr. Thamer Altuwaiyan said in the report.

The funding comes as RedBox — not affiliated with the movie rental kiosks — is working to expand its footprint and services.

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The company recently launched “RedBox Express,” which lets customers send shipments between Saudi Arabian cities, and “Smart Mailroom,” a service that lets private companies, residential complexes and government buildings send and receive documents and parcels.

RedBox also plans to expand to cover every region of Saudi Arabia and increase the number of its stations to 800 by year’s end. It recently began operating in Bahrain and Qatar, with plans to extend its reach into the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Oman.

The funding round was led by RAAF Holding Company. Its president, Ali AlOthaim, said RAAF chose to invest in RedBox because of the importance of logistics in Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 program. The country’s logistics market is estimated at $22.9 billion, he added.

Learn more: Swedish Delivery Firm Instabox Raises $190M

That’s in keeping with the global industry trend. Last month, Swedish delivery service Instabox was valued at more than $1 billion after raising $190 million.

Founded in 2015, the company describes itself as a service that lets “select online partners” receive deliveries at smart boxes seven days a week.

“The global parcels market continues to grow every year, and Instabox’s lightning-quick, hassle-free, and completely fossil fuel-free shipping set us apart from traditional shipping companies,” said Co-founder and CEO Alexis Priftis. “The new funding will help us build on that and further improve our service, making it even more sustainable and customer-focused.”