Pakistan-based social commerce platform DealCart announced on Thursday that it has raised $4.5 million in pre-seed funding round, a development that comes just four months after the company was established.

The round was led by Shorooq Partners with participation from Fatima Gobi Ventures, Vibe Capital, 500 Global, i2i Ventures, Julian Shapiro, Rally Cap Ventures, Alex Lazarow, and several strategic angel investors, added the statement.

DealCart enables users to buy everyday essentials, locally manufactured products and fresh produce in groups as well as share deals on WhatsApp and other social media platforms. It believes it can empower customers by giving them the ability to place larger orders versus buying alone.

According to its website, “this will unlock lower prices and provide an engaging new way to shop”.

DealCart, founded by former Careem executives Ammar Naveed and Haider Raza, said it will use the funding for further product development and team expansion.

“DealCart is going after a $60-billion total addressable market and wants to build a company that the region can be proud of,” it said in the statement.

Funding in Pakistan’s startup sector hit a record high in 2021 with momentum carrying on during the current year. During the second quarter of 2022 (April-June), the sector raised $103 million across 15 deals. However, the amount was 40% lower on a quarterly basis and came in tandem with cost-cutting measures and wrapping up of operations.

Earlier this month, Airlift Technologies, which was responsible for the country’s largest single private funding round in history, announced it is shutting down operations permanently. In June, VavaCars – backed by Dutch energy and commodity trading company Vitol – also said that it has shut down operations in Pakistan.

DealCart said it believes despite a burgeoning growth in smartphone and internet penetration, e-commerce adoption remains low among the middle and lower-middle income segments of the country which constitutes the majority of Pakistan’s 220 million population.

It said the main reason for this is that “e-commerce marketplaces today primarily serve higher income groups, offering premium electronics, fashion apparel, and various goods and services through quick commerce.”

“Recognising that the majority of the population values and prioritises the affordability of daily essential products, DealCart co-founders Haider Raza and Ammar Naveed are addressing this unmet ecommerce need through its ‘buy together and save together’ model,” it added.

Naveed said his company aims to achieve commercial sustainability on a long-term basis.

“We plan to do this by having a super lean cost structure while expanding and growing the business primarily through our technology,” he was quoted as saying.