Thai logistics unicorn Flash Express enters Laos via partnership

Flash Express, a Thailand-based ecommerce logistics unicorn, said it has partnered with AIF Group Laos to jointly launch Flash Laos – a land and air delivery service – in the Southeast Asian country.

Flash Group CEO Komsan Saelee/ Photo credit: Flash Group

Flash Laos will allow customers to courier parcels between Thailand and Vientiane, the capital of Laos, through an application on which they can pre-book a delivery service, track parcels, and check service fees on their own.

The two companies also expect to launch cross-border business-to-business, business-to-consumer, and customer-to-customer services between Thailand and Laos in November 2021. They will also look to recruit new local business partners for Flash Laos.

Rithikone Phoummasack, Chairman of AIF Group Laos/ Photo credit: AIF Group

Flash Express’s services include large-scale transportation, fulfillment, product warehousing, and financial services like Flash Money and Flash Pay.

Meanwhile, AIF Group’s focuses mainly on banking and financial services, energy utilities, construction, property and infrastructure development, ecommerce, telecom and technology services, trading, and agriculture. The company operates in Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and Singapore.

See also: Does the dawn of in-house ecommerce delivery threaten third-party logistics firms?

“With economic and social study of CLMV (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam) market, Flash foresees an opportunity for full service logistic to our neighbor countries, being well prepared in terms of labors and resources,” the companies said in a joint statement.

Flash Group entered the unicorn club this June after raising a cumulative US$150 million from its series D+ and series E rounds. According to the company, the fundraise came after it reached a peak daily parcel volume of 2 million units.