Early-stage venture capital investor Accelerating Asia has revealed its latest investment in 10 new startups as part of the 8th cohort of its flagship accelerator program.
Among the chosen startups is On Demand Deals (ODD), an innovative platform from the Philippines that empowers entrepreneurs to monetize vacant spaces by establishing ODD stores.
ODD stores are omnichannel convenience stores that can deliver in minutes. Headquartered in Metro Manila, ODD offers a P250,000-franchise fee for interested entrepreneurs.
The fee includes P150,000 in products, business registration, a Grab store, and a Foodpanda store. Accelerating Asia said ODD’s business model is embedded with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
ODD joins nine other startups from seven markets across Southeast Asia, South Asia, and the Middle East and North Africa region, according to the announcement.
Accelerating Asia said the 10 startups, which hail from a wide variety of industries, including education, e-commerce, logistics, insurtech, and agritech, have collectively raised $5.8 million despite the prevailing downturn in funding.
Additionally, the Cohort showcases impressive market traction with a Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) exceeding $57,000 per month and an average monthly revenue surpassing $27,000.
According to Accelerating Asia co-founder and general partner Craig Dixon, this market traction is what separated the chosen ten startups from the wider pool of applicants.
“The new cohort comes into the portfolio with strong early revenue and fundraising traction in their local markets. Accelerating Asia looks forward to helping them leverage this early success to scale into larger geographies and fundraise from a larger suite of investors across the world,” Dixon added.
Alongside market traction, Accelerating Asia places importance on social impact. Cohort 8 startups are making notable contributions to their communities, creating over 1000 jobs and with gender lens investments constituting 50% of all startups in the portfolio.
Across Accelerating Asia’s eight cohorts, there are now 70 startups in more than 20 verticals, which are led by over 100 founders. These startups have an average of over $285,000 in monthly revenue and an annualized revenue growth of 520%.
About Accelerating Asia’s Startups
Pattern (Pakistan) is the first social food app in Pakistan with a focus on the dine-in & pick-up experience which is more than 2x the delivery market. Pattern lets diners discover, order, pay, review, and unlock multiple offers at their favorite restaurants including loyalty discounts, redeemable reward points, cashback, and more.
Lemonade (Global) is a marketplace brand that retails luxury goods at fair prices, connecting world’s best manufacturers, directly to consumers across Asia.
Lister (Indonesia) is the leading online learning platform for languages and test preparation in Indonesia.
Edutechs (Bangladesh) is the easiest way to start adding technology to your teaching. Built from the ground-up to automate and expand your teaching business with the click of a single button!
Fullfily (India) is an electric vehicle-based full-stack solution for intra-city deliveries.
On Demand Deals (Philippines) empowers entrepreneurs to earn extra income from empty spaces by franchising ODD Stores, omnichannel convenience stores that can deliver in minutes.
Sova Health (India) is India’s first full-stack Gut Health company offering proprietary synbiotic supplements, gut microbiome testing, and 1:1 nutrition coaching for conditions such as Acidity, Bloating, IBS, Hormonal Acne, Migraines, Anxiety, and more.
Proton (United Arab Emirates) is the MENA region’s first & only insurance platform that helps insurance companies better risk portfolio through behavior-based driving data and incentivizes insurance customers for good behavior.
Sparklehaze (Singapore) provides enterprise-grade In-Room voice AI assistant for the luxury hospitality industry.
WEGRO (Bangladesh) provides end-to-end solutions for farmers connecting them with finance and buyers to sell their produce.