How LAAM Is Putting South Asian Fashion On The Global Stage

Time away from his native Pakistan during stints in North America at technology companies including Meta, Microsoft and Pinterest, taught Arif Iqbal two things. “I learned a great deal about how to build and scale technology products,” says Iqbal. “I also realised that every South Asian expatriate has a wardrobe full of South Asian fashion that they had to get family and friends to send over to them.”

These two experiences were the inspiration for the launch of LAAM Technologies, an e-commerce platform that Iqbal co-founded in 2021 on his return to Pakistan. Today, the company is unveiling a $5.5 million seed funding round as it steps up its efforts to scale and grow.

LAAM is an online marketplace that sells a wide range of South Asian fashion to customers in both South Asia itself and to the rest of the world. “It’s a huge market,” says Iqbal, now CEO of the company “You’ve got 2 billion people living in Pakistan, Bangladesh and India, but another 100 million expatriates living and working internationally.”

LAAM also plays a crucial role in Pakistan itself, providing a means for the country’s fragmented fashion sector to reach new customers and grow more quickly. The platform offers a range of services such as logistics, fulfillment and customs administration – as well as software tools that help sellers with key business tasks such as demand forecasting and inventory management.

“Part of our mission is to enable creativity,” Iqbal explains. “We’re empowering designers and artisans, and supporting the livelihoods of more than 10,000 families.” Each new designer that comes on to the platform adds to its inventory – LAAM now sells more than 100,000 items to its global customer base.

Growth has been rapid, with LAAM’s revenues doubling in each of its four years in business. Sellers on its platform have so far sold close to $100 million worth of their products to more than 500,000 customers in 100 countries worldwide. LAAM takes a slice of each sale and also has a growing business supporting sellers who are developing their own direct-to-consumer websites.

Iqbal hopes LAAM’s first fundraising will help it to accelerate at an even more rapid rate. The money is earmarked for further investment in the technology underpinning the platform – including features such as artificial intelligence agents that support sellers – and to put staff on the ground in its biggest markets, such as the US and the Middle East. “That should enable us to improve the customer experience in these key regions,” Iqbal says.

The company is also keen to encourage more sellers to join the site – including from other South Asian countries – and to embark on a much more aggressive go-to-market strategy. Much of the growth achieved by LAAM so far has come from careful use of social media channels and SEO tools, helped by Iqbal’s own tech sector background. “It also helps that South Asian communities tend to very tight-knit,” he adds. “If you sell to five people, you can expect another 200 to come and have a look at what you’ve got to offer.”

Investors have taken a close interest in the company – and the potential size of the market. Today’s funding round is led by Disrupt Ventures and Zayn VC, with participation from Graph Ventures, Mentors Fund, and a number of technology sector leaders from companies including Oracle, Microsoft, Google and Salesforce.

“LAAM’s ability to elevate South Asian fashion onto the global stage while empowering local artisans is commendable,” says Faisal Aftab, managing partner at Zayn VC. “We believe LAAM has a unique opportunity to transform how South Asian fashion is perceived and accessed globally.”

At Disrupt Ventures, managing partner Aaqib Gadit adds: “Laam’s innovative approach to solving logistical and operational challenges is a testament to the product’s potential to redefine how this market is served.”