Telio’s cost-cutting gambit for new funding

Telio, a B2B ecommerce startup backed by prominent investors such as Tiger Global, Granite Asia, Peak XV, and VNG, is aiming to raise between US$10 million and US$15 million in fresh funding by year-end.

The Vietnam-based company is also gunning for profitability (EBITDA positive) by mid-2026, founder and CEO Sy Phong Bui told Tech in Asia in an exclusive interview.

Telio’s leadership team / Photo credit: Telio

Founded in 2018, Telio has raised US$52.5 million in funding across five rounds. However, this does not include the reported US$15 million round from Granite Oak in August 2023 that did not materialize, as confirmed by Bui.

Telio is one of the first startups in Vietnam to digitalize mom and pop stores, which are known locally as cửa hàng tạp hoá. These are similar to warungs in Indonesia or sari-sari stores in the Philippines.

In recent years, a number of B2B ecommerce players have exited Vietnam due to rising costs, intense competition, and a tough economic environment. These market conditions echo the situation in Indonesia and India.

See also: Ula cuts jobs, exits FMCG distribution for ‘long-term economic sustainability’

Slashing costs to stay afloat

Bui, however, believes that his startup can beat the odds.

He is well aware that Telio operates in a ruthless segment of B2B ecommerce, where even companies like Udaan in India and Ula in Indonesia, which have raised hundreds of millions in funding, have yet to turn profitable.

Telio founder and CEO Sy Phong Bui / Photo credit: Tech in Asia

Many startups struggle to navigate the layers of middlemen between the stores and suppliers, shoulder high operational costs, and survive thin margins in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector.

Still, Bui is convinced that the 1.4 million mom and pop stores in Vietnam remain largely underserved, even after the first wave of startups attempting to digitalize them emerged in 2021.

See also: A David vs. Goliath battle in Vietnam’s B2B ecommerce sector

“Not magic”