Whether you're shopping for clothes, groceries, or consumer electronics, make sure you never overpay and stop looking for promo codes to save money. Dubai-based tech startup Helwa has released a browser extension, or plug-in, for Chrome and a mobile app to find discount coupons on your favorite online shopping sites and automatically insert them at checkout, thus saving money. Helwa means sweet in Hindi and Arabic. The business was launched by two tech journalists, Hitesh Uchil and Abbas Jaffar Ali, who came out during these unprecedented times to help shoppers save every penny, all under one roof and without downloading countless apps. “It starts as a net and becomes a deluge. It's an opportunity for people to take care of their families because things get tougher and people have less money during Covid-19. It is the leading automated coupon search site in the Middle East and North Africa,” Uchil said.
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(Image credit: future)
One stop shop for all your purchases
The platform has more than 35 partners on board in the region, such as BabyShop, Amazon, Jumbo, AliExpress, Freshtohome, GAP, Bloomingdales, and Firstcry, to name a few. Uchil was inspired by the American automatic coupon site: Honey. “During the foreclosure, some of the e-commerce sites shut down coupon services due to increased sales. We are helping buyers cope with the impact of the pandemic,” he said. The platform offers discounts between 2% and 30%. "We believe that every penny counts and we encourage people to take advantage of free access," said Uchil. People can take advantage of the benefits without signing up, but Uchil recommends people sign up because they plan to offer rebate offers soon. "We will offer cash back after collecting Helwa points and exchange them for coupons in phase two," he said. In phase three, he said, people can add products to their list and get the best prices after comparison. However, he said the mission was to help people save as much as possible. "We plan to add more than 300 partners by the end of the year and add airlines, restaurants, hotels and we want to cover all categories and ultimately become the money-saving Uber of the Middle East," he said. The platform is initially focused on the United Arab Emirates, but plans to add brands from Saudi Arabia and Egypt. “Our next program is to launch it in Arabic and integrate it with international websites. Our ultimate goal is to be a one stop shop for all your purchases," he said.