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§ Private Profile · Bogotá, Colombia
Social commerce platform modernizing direct sales for low-income women entrepreneurs in Latin America, managing logistics via mobile app.
Based in Bogotá, Colombia, Elenas operates a social commerce platform that enables independent representatives to sell consumer goods through digital catalogs. The company manages product sourcing, logistics, and payment processing while users market items like beauty products and electronics directly to their networks via platforms such as Facebook and WhatsApp. The enterprise has scaled its operations across Colombia and Mexico, facilitating more than two million orders and paying out $7 million in commissions to over 100,000 women. Recognized by Forbes as a top regional digital startup, the firm maintains a workforce of over 230 employees and partners with more than 250 distributors and brands. Elenas has raised over $28 million in total funding, including a $20 million Series B round in October 2022, and was founded in 2018 by Zach Oschin and Thomas Harsch.
Elenas has raised $26.0M across 2 funding rounds.
Elenas has raised $26.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Elenas has raised $26.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Elenas's investors include Alejandro Diez Barroso, Broadhaven Ventures, Endeavor Catalyst, FJ Labs, Grupo Bolivar, Inter-American Development Bank, Leo Capital, Mercado Libre Fund, monashees, Hans Tung, Alpha4 Ventures, Shwetank Verma.
Elenas has raised $26.0M across 2 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $20.0M Series B in October 2022.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 11, 2022 | $20M Series B | Alejandro Diez Barroso | Broadhaven Ventures, Endeavor Catalyst, FJ Labs, Grupo Bolivar, Inter American Development Bank, LEO Capital, Mercado Libre Fund | Announced |
| Mar 1, 2021 | $6M Series A | — | Monashees, Hans Tung, Alpha4 Ventures, FJ Labs, Shwetank Verma, Meesho | Announced |
Elenas is a Colombia-based social commerce platform founded in 2017 or 2018 that empowers women in Latin America, particularly in Colombia and Mexico, to launch online businesses by selling products via WhatsApp, Facebook, and other social media.[1][2][4] It serves primarily working- and middle-class women transitioning from traditional catalog or door-to-door sales—estimated at 11 million across the region—by providing a digital marketplace with product sourcing, delivery, payment collection, and inventory management, focusing on nonperishables like beauty, personal care, home goods, fashion, and electronics.[2][5] The platform solves income augmentation for low-income entrepreneurs while digitizing informal sales, achieving over 2 million orders, 100,000+ sellers, 70x growth in two years, revenue scaling 5x between funding rounds, and $48.3 million in revenue with 230-425 employees.[2][3][4][5]
Elenas was founded by CEO Zach Oschin in Colombia around 2017-2018 (sources vary slightly on the exact year), inspired by the prevalence of 11 million women in Latin America relying on outdated direct sales methods like catalogs and door-to-door.[1][2][4][5] Oschin, who participated in TechCrunch's Latin American Startup Battlefield in 2018, aimed to modernize this by enabling home-based online selling without infrastructure burdens.[2] Early traction came from focusing on high-margin, nonperishable goods, rapid scaling to 600 towns including rural areas, and bucking e-commerce downturns through social channels.[2] Key milestones include a $20M raise in 2022, growth to over 100,000 sellers processing 2 million orders, and partnerships like financing from Partners for Growth (PFG) to upgrade tech and expand.[1][2]
Elenas rides the social commerce wave in Latin America, akin to Pinduoduo in China or Meesho in India, by pioneering group-buying and social-selling models for underserved, low-income women in a region with high WhatsApp/Facebook penetration but fragmented e-commerce.[3][5] Timing aligns with post-pandemic digital adoption, rising female entrepreneurship, and logistics maturation in LatAm, where traditional direct sales dominate but lack efficiency—Elenas digitizes this $ multi-billion informal market while expanding to rural areas previously unreachable.[2] Market forces like investor interest in resilient models (e.g., nonperishables amid volatility) and partnerships (PFG, Mercado Libre) bolster it; the company influences the ecosystem by empowering hundreds of thousands of women, scaling local suppliers, and proving social commerce viability, potentially unlocking broader economic inclusion.[1][3]
Elenas is positioned for LatAm social commerce dominance, with plans to deepen seller networks, enter new markets, expand suppliers/logistics, and invest in tech/user experience post-PFG financing.[1][2] Trends like AI-driven personalization, further social platform integrations, and LatAm's e-commerce boom (projected 20%+ CAGR) will accelerate growth, especially as it mirrors global successes like Meesho. Influence may evolve through regional expansion, potential unicorn status via 70x precedents, and ecosystem impact via empowered entrepreneurs—watch for seller base tripling and product diversification to sustain momentum from its income-empowering origins.[3][5]