UAE-based eyeglasses startup has stealthily raised financing from top US private equity firm General Atlantic, The Information reported. The company invested in Eyewa early this year but hasn’t acknowledged it.
In June 2021, Kingsway and Nuwa Capital led a $21 million Series B financing round. Now with almost 120 locations, nearly 100 in Saudi Arabia, Eyewa has grown significantly. The startup’s first store opened in Dahran in 2021.
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Eyewa co-founder and co-CEO Mehdi Oudghiri told MENAbytes in a previous interview that they ventured into retail to be closer to clients. We started as an ecommerce firm since no one was selling high-quality, inexpensive eyewear online with exceptional customer service. Expanding retail will complement our strong online presence and solidify our eyewear sector leadership.”
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It was , founded in 2017 by Mehdi Oudghiri and Anass Boumediene, distributes prescription glasses, sunglasses, blue light glasses, colour contact lenses, and corrective contact lenses online, on mobile apps, and in stores. The startup sells Blackout, Layala, and 30Sundays spectacles and lenses, as well as Hugo, Tommy Hilfiger, and Guess.
It sells its products in all six GCC markets, both online and in stores. Eyewa is the region’s largest online eyewear retailer, per its website.
It is General Atlantic’s second regional investment. In 2018, the PE firm led a $120 million proptech startup investment in Property Finder.
About Eyewa
Eyewa was formed in 2017 to provide a unique, efficient, and pleasant shopping experience for high-quality eyeglasses at cheap rates on a sophisticated and easy-to-use platform.
