MySyara acquires car wash app for $2.8m

Dubai: MySyara, an online provider of automotive services in the UAE, announced the acquisition of SKKYN Technologies, an on-demand car wash app, for $2.8 million (Dh10.27 million).

MySyara (Arabic for ‘my car’) launched apps earlier this year on iOS and Android phones, and says it is the Middle East’s first car maintenance app, providing users with car care solutions. It said the acquisition of SKKYN will add “immense synergy” to the business as it adds to MySyara’s existing portfolio of car services.

The deal marks the first acquisition by MySyara, and the company said that “many more” will follow. It did not elaborate on where the financing for the deals will come from.

The acquisition comes amid growth for on-demand services provided through apps, from food delivery to fuel refill. In the automotive sector, for example, UAE-based start-up Cafu, which offers services to refill customers’ cars’ fuel tanks at their preferred location, has been gaining traction.

Even traditional service providers in the UAE have been eyeing a share of that on-demand market. Emirates National Oil Company (Enoc) announced in October it will launch an app that allows drivers to have someone come to their location to fuel their car.