Paperfly, a startup that claims to be the first true homegrown logistic-tech venture, shares how they were able to scale from a one-room business to a mammoth logis-tech startup that delivers to over 4400 unions.
Paperfly didn’t start overnight. The three co-founders of Paperfly have been working in the corporate arena for more than ten years before entering the world of startup. When asked why leave all the luxury and stability that a 9 to 5 job was offering, Shahriar Hassan, CEO of Paperfly chuckled. That demure smile said it all. He said, ‘We wanted to do more and start something of our own.’ He added, ‘We tried several other startup ideas. Some worked but were ahead of their time; some crashed and burned completely. But the startup that can fuel the booming e-bizes of Bangladesh actually stood out.’
Shahriar started to work with this idea and was later joined by two other co-founders: Md. Razibul Islam and A.K Rahath Ahmed. Razibul now heads operations, while Rahath looks after marketing.
‘After the order has been made in e-commerce or f-commerce platforms, wouldn’t it be great if a logistics venture took over the entire responsibility of picking up the product, performing quality check, doing the packaging, and delivering the goods to customers? That’s how Paperfly was born’, Razibul.
Paperfly started its journey 2 years ago, after observing the huge growth potential of e-commerce in Bangladesh. Initially they had a small setup only covering Dhaka city. Gradually Paperfly increased its footprint to Chittagong and Sylhet. And now, it covers all 64 districts.
Excerpts from “PAPERFLY: The story of a ‘to-your-doorstep’ startup”, published in Daily Star on 5th July, 2019.
