By Ireland-based Small Foundation has made an undisclosed investment in Unmarkets, a Nairobi-based venture builder, to help launch four new agribusiness ventures in Kenya, the companies said.
The capital will help the ventures acquire equipment, secure supply chains, test products and hire operating teams, Small Foundation said. It added that it invested alongside other, unnamed investors, but did not disclose the size or structure of the deal.
The investment is part of Small Foundation’s broader effort to provide startup capital and technical support to businesses linked to rural economies across sub-Saharan Africa.
Unmarkets was founded in 2023 by Milan Samani. The company builds joint ventures with established food and agriculture businesses that already have production facilities, supplier networks, brands and customers, according to the company.
Under the model, local partners contribute their own capital and remain involved in managing the new businesses. Unmarkets adds further funding and leads product design, brand development, management recruitment, strategy, finance and operations.
The approach is intended to let new agribusinesses draw on existing infrastructure and commercial relationships rather than building production and distribution networks from scratch.
Unmarkets invests through a $12 million capital vehicle backed by Shell Foundation and family offices.
Unmarkets structures each venture in three phases, according to the company. A 12-week design phase is used to assess the business case, commercial targets and potential development impact with a prospective partner.
Ventures then move into a nine-to-12-month launch period, during which Unmarkets and the local partner each contribute an initial investment of between $250,000 and $500,000, the company said.
Unmarkets can subsequently provide $2 million to $4 million in follow-on capital to ventures that meet agreed operating and financial targets. That funding is meant to support expansion, management hiring and the development of cash-flow-positive businesses.
Unmarkets’ first joint venture is Taraji Foods, a Kenyan food company developing a premium snack brand made from cassava, the company said.
Taraji Foods was formed with Beju Shah, founder of Spice World, whose production experience and sourcing relationships support the venture’s product development and market strategy.
Small Foundation and Unmarkets said the model addresses a financing gap that differs from the needs of many technology startups.
Food processors, millers, aggregators and agricultural input businesses typically require equipment, supplier contracts, quality controls and physical distribution networks before they can generate revenue, the companies said.
Combining capital with the infrastructure and market knowledge of established operators can reduce some of the cost and execution risk of launching such businesses, according to Unmarkets.
“We believe Africa’s next generation of agribusinesses will be built by combining the strengths of established local companies,” Samani, founder and chief executive of Unmarkets, said in a statement.
Small Foundation’s relationship with Unmarkets predates the latest investment. In 2024, the foundation awarded Unmarkets a grant to refine the legal and corporate structure of its venture-building model, including how ownership and incentives are shared between Unmarkets and its local partners, according to the companies.
The new investment shifts that relationship from model development to financing operating businesses, they said.
Kenya’s agribusiness sector has drawn growing interest from impact investors and development finance institutions seeking to strengthen rural supply chains and food processing capacity in East Africa.
Small Foundation, an Irish philanthropic organization, focuses on providing early-stage capital and technical assistance to enterprises serving rural populations in sub-Saharan Africa.
Unmarkets did not disclose the names of the three additional ventures planned in Kenya or provide a timeline for their launch.
