diff --git a/ontopy/excelparser.py b/ontopy/excelparser.py
index 4e6f85eae..913063d15 100755
--- a/ontopy/excelparser.py
+++ b/ontopy/excelparser.py
@@ -107,7 +107,10 @@ def create_ontology_from_excel(  # pylint: disable=too-many-arguments
     except ValueError:
         pass
     else:
-        imports.extend(imports_frame["Imported ontologies"].to_list())
+        # Strip leading and trailing white spaces in path
+        imports.extend(
+            imports_frame["Imported ontologies"].str.strip().to_list()
+        )
 
     # Read datafile TODO: Some magic to identify the header row
     conceptdata = pd.read_excel(