SweepSouth, an online home services platform with presence across Africa, has announced the completion of an $11m investment round led by Alitheia IDF (AIF), Africa’s first and largest gender-lens private equity fund. Current investors including Naspers Foundry, The Michael and Susan Dell Foundation, and Futuregrowth Asset Management also committed to participate in the new round, while Endeavor Catalyst, Endeavor’s Harvest Fund II, Caruso Ventures, and E4E Africa partook as new investors.
Co-founded in 2014 by Aisha Pandor and Alen Ribic, SweepSouth has a presence in Africa’s four key tech markets: South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, and Egypt. The innovative on-demand connect platform affords customers the flexibility of booking a pre-vetted household or outdoor service professional at any time, providing a convenient and reliable connection, underpinned by a sense of trust.
According to the company, the latest round of funding will foster further development, expand its infrastructure and team in South Africa, roll out new services in existing markets, and pursue both greenfield expansions and acquisitions across the African continent and beyond.
Aisha Pandor, co-founder of SweepSouth, said the new funding round is an important one for the team as it continues to scale in South Africa, and further grow operations in Kenya, Nigeria, and Egypt.
“We’re excited to continue SweepSouth’s work in connecting customers with home service providers across the continent, building a platform that empowers domestic workers and local tradespeople,” Pandor said.
“We are particularly proud to have raised funding from Alitheia IDF, a female-led fund, and to have included more women investors on the cap table via a female-focused SPV during this round. We are excited about what this means for us going forward and thrilled to have Polo Leteka from Alitheia IDF join the board,” she said.
Alen Ribic, co-founder of SweepSouth, said the company is excited about bringing new shareholders on board in its mission to build technology that aids in providing meaningful connections.
This, she added, includes giving customers access to safe, convenient services, and home service providers access to decent work opportunities under dignified conditions.
Polo Leteka, principal partner, Alitheia IDF Fund, said the women-focused and women-led private equity fund is proud to support SweepSouth’s growth as it expands its platform that substantially improves the financial and social outcomes for domestic workers across Africa, most of which are women.
Leteka, who described the domestic services industry as notoriously informal and exploitative, said SweepSouth’s model solves autonomy, security, and increasing income for its service providers, and affordability and flexibility for its end users.
“AIF’s investment will enable the development of infrastructure and operations that will deliver growth for stakeholders – particularly domestic workers and local tradespeople at the base of the economic pyramid,” she said.
In addition to its expansion efforts, SweepSouth is expected to scale its current efforts to improve the economic and legal rights of domestic workers through efforts such as the SweepSouth Report on Pay and Working Conditions for Domestic Workers Across Africa. The report highlights the struggles of domestic workers in Africa and encourages more action from governments and stakeholders.
