Mohamed Sekkina, General Manager at talabat mart Egypt speaks to My Startup World about the success of Q-commerce in the region and how talabat mart is making its mark in the industry

How would you define your journey with talabat mart?
I have always been very excited about the tech industry and how quickly it is evolving. Ever since I graduated from computer engineering, I have always wanted to join the tech industry, however not as a computer engineer but more as a business leader. Since then, I have been building my skill-set and knowledge in the business management field so I can move back to the industry with strong knowledge in both tech and business management.

I got the opportunity to become part of talabat mart’s successful launch story after I left a grocery startup that I worked on along with a group of friends. Since the first day, and even before I joined talabat, I was fascinated by the concept of the dark stores and how talabat is leading the concept evolution not only in the region, but in the globe through our mother company, Delivery Hero.

The journey so far has been nothing but exciting. The amount of achievements and the level of excitement that talabat mart’s team is operating with is unbelievable. talabat mart is one of the fastest growing environments anyone can work in. In only one and a half years, I was privileged to launch and lead tmart across 3 different countries. Since I joined the team, I have built organizations of around 500 people and launched more than 30 dark stores across 3 countries. I cannot think of a better and more fulfilling experience.

What are the challenges faced by the Q-Commerce industry and how is talabat mart working to overcome them?
The Q-commerce industry is pretty new not only in the region, but across the globe. The challenges we face are mainly about the education of the whole ecosystem starting from the product suppliers. Q-commerce is basically revolutionizing how the product supply chain works. The real challenge is about how we alter the big suppliers’ supply chains to serve for numerous darkstores among a very big geographical area while maintaining the costs low. Also, one of the real challenges of the q-commerce business is managing the fresh food supply chain and quality. In tmart we managed to develop the right processes and forecasting algorithms to properly supply fresh products to our customers 24/7 with almost no complaints about quality.

How will the Q-Commerce industry evolve in the region over the next 2-3 years?
I believe nobody can anticipate the potential at this point. The level of growth and the user adoption to the quick commerce concept is way beyond anybody’s expectations. The Q-commerce is truly revolutionizing the retail industry. I believe in 2-3 years from now, the region will be packed with more local and global Q-commerce players. I also expect to see huge investments in the industry since the growth we are seeing is phenomenal.

Where do you see talabat Mart in the next 3 years?
I see talabat mart as the leading player in the Q-commerce market in coming years and for the consumers, we will be the number one go-to place for their grocery needs and much more.