CarniStore attracts $12.2 million strategic investment to scale premium food operations
- UAE-based e-commerce platform CarniStore has secured a $12.2 million (AED 45 million) strategic minority investment from Emirates Growth Fund (EGF) to scale its premium protein business.
- Founded in 2018 by Daniel Wanies and Fikry Boutros, CarniStore operates a digital-first premium butchery and protein platform, combining sourcing, production, and online retail across meat, seafood, poultry, and smoked products.
- The funding will support industrial scaling, new product verticals, and regional expansion as the company moves toward institutional readiness.
- EGF will also work with the founders to strengthen governance, go-to-market strategy, and operational capabilities, positioning CarniStore as a potential national champion.
Press release:
Emirates Growth Fund (EGF), the UAE’s flagship growth equity investor, has announced a landmark AED 45 million strategic minority investment in CarniStore, the nation’s leading premium protein business, bringing together sourcing expertise, proprietary production, and digital retail to elevate food standards across the UAE. This marks EGF’s first investment in the food sector, representing a definitive step in the UAE’s mission to foster "National Champions" and signalling a powerful vote of confidence in the scalability of the country’s premium, locally-rooted F&B sector.
Since launching in 2018, CarniStore has emerged as a defining force in the UAE’s premium protein market, uniting heritage butchery expertise with a digital-first, consumer-driven approach.
EGF’s capital injection is designed to supercharge CarniStore’s industrial scaling and expansion into new verticals and products, driving the brand towards institutional readiness and broader regional penetration as a flagship of UAE premium food sector excellence.
Khalifa Al Hajeri, CEO of Emirates Growth Fund (EGF), commented:
“EGF’s investment in CarniStore reflects our mandate to support high-potential UAE businesses within the ‘missing middle’ through strategic capital and active partnership. We remain actively deploying, consistent with our long-term mandate to back strong UAE businesses, by working alongside them as they execute on their growth ambitions. Beyond just investing growth equity, we work with founders to strengthen go-to-market, governance and institutional capability. CarniStore exemplifies the entrepreneurial grit and quality standards we seek in homegrown companies with the potential to evolve into enduring national champions in their industries.”
Fikry “Fix” Boutros, Co-CEO & Co-Founder of CarniStore, noted:
"This partnership with EGF feels like a natural next step in our journey. We share a belief in building strong, homegrown businesses with a long-term vision and real foundations. From day one, our focus has been on raising the standard for quality proteins while supporting the UAE’s growing food community. Together, we’re excited to keep building, to reach more people, and to shape how meat is sourced and experienced, starting here at home."
Daniel “ Dan” Wanies, Co-CEO & Co-Founder of CarniStore, added:
"EGF’s strategic backing allows us to scale CarniStore with real intention, growing our operations and developing new products while protecting the premium quality and service our customers rely on. It’s an important step forward and a reminder that a UAE-born brand can lead internationally, not simply participate."
As a strategic minority investor, EGF will accelerate CarniStore’s institutional scale and expansion, partnering with its visionary founders to strengthen governance, enhance institutional capability, and drive long-term value creation, while preserving the company’s distinct identity and entrepreneurial spirit. This partnership reinforces EGF’s mandate to back high traction, UAE-based businesses with the potential to become enduring national champions that strengthen and diversify the UAE’s economic landscape.
