Egypt’s B2B startup Tradehub, a collaborative quoting and catalog platform that helps suppliers streamline the sales cycle has made the difficult decision to shut down the company.
This decision comes after Tradehub could not achieve product-market fit despite multiple pivots and months of testing. After careful consideration, the founders chose to wind down operations rather than continue pivoting without strong conviction in a new direction.
Speaking on the shutdown, the company’s co-founder Ahmed Gaber wrote via a LinkedIn post,
Register for Tekedia Mini-MBA edition 19 (Feb 9 – May 2, 2026): big discounts for early bird.
Tekedia AI in Business Masterclass opens registrations.
Join Tekedia Capital Syndicate and co-invest in great global startups.
Register for Tekedia AI Lab: From Technical Design to Deployment (next edition begins Jan 24 2026).
“Yesterday, we officially returned all remaining capital to our investors and dissolved the company. I wanted to wait until everything was finalized before sharing this. TradeHub was a bittersweet journey. Ahmed Atef and I started in late December 2023, and by February 2024 we were fortunate to have investors who believed in us, backing us with a $1.4M pre-seed round. We spent the following 18 months validating and experimenting on our initial idea of a cross-border B2B marketplace, before eventually pivoting to a B2B sales automation SaaS tool.
“Despite our best efforts, we couldn’t reach product-market fit. Accepting that reality, we made the difficult but responsible decision to wind down the company and return the remaining capital to our investors. But why didn’t we pivot to a third idea since the first two didn’t work and we still had capital left?
“The short answer is: conviction. By the time we explored multiple directions and learned from our experiments, we no longer had a strong enough conviction in a third idea that justified the risk of continuing. Continuing just for the sake of “trying something else” didn’t feel responsible to us. Two Personal Reflections: I’ve come to learn that knowing when to let go is just as important as knowing when to push forward. For two months, I grappled with that exact decision, trying to find the thin line between letting go and continuing to try. Ultimately, you have to take all the factors—and the people you’re responsible for—into consideration. Making the difficult but responsible decision to wind down was a sign of maturity, not of giving up.”
The founders expressed gratitude to their investors Concept Ventures, TLcom Capital LLP, Armyn Capital, and several angel investors for their unwavering support throughout the journey and even after the decision to close the company.
Founded in late December 2023 by Ahmed Atef and his co-founder Ahmed Gaber, Tradehub worked to connect manufacturers with local and global buyers for seamless B2B trade. Initially launched as a cross-border B2B marketplace, the team spent months validating and experimenting with their idea before pivoting to build a B2B sales automation SaaS tool.
TradeHub’s dedicated platform worked to showcase manufacturers in the local and global markets by providing factory pages where they can display their factory and product details through images. This made it easier for potential buyers to search and discover local manufacturers.
Additionally, the platform allowed buyers to request price quotes, create tenders, and communicate with manufacturers through the available chat feature. By February 2024, the startup had raised a $1.4 million pre-seed round from investors who believed in their mission.
Core Offerings on The TradeHub Digital Platform Include;
Business Profiles: Traders showcased their businesses and products to local and global buyers.
AI-Powered RFQs: The procurement process on the platform is simplified and transformed with intelligent RFQ tools.
Growth Opportunities: TradeHub helped businesses increase sales and reach new markets with ease.
Connection: The platform enabled users to search and connect with manufacturers who have the skills and resources to produce what they’re looking for.
However, despite these innovative offerings and efforts to stay afloat, the company deemed it fit to shut down, a decision that was not taken lightly. The founders reflected deeply on the balance between perseverance and knowing when to let go. One key lesson they shared was that ending a venture is not a sign of failure, but rather a sign of maturity and responsible leadership.
TradeHub’s story serves as a reminder that building a startup is as much about resilience and learning as it is about growth and success. While this chapter has closed, the lessons learned will undoubtedly fuel future innovations.