Retail and restaurant tech is a category of agrifood tech startups encompassing technologies and services aimed at making retail food businesses more profitable as well as improving shopper experience at the supermarket, in restaurants and other brick & mortar stores. The category includes technology including robotic retail, shelf-stacking robots, 3D food printers, POS systems, and food waste monitoring IoT.
With Amazon’s employee-less supermarkets and the rise of online grocery purchasing, retailers are increasingly looking to technology to optimize their performance while also dishing up consumers exactly what they’re after.
In 2018, startups in the category raised $1.7 billion in funding, representing a 14% decline from $1.9 billion in 2017, according to the AgriFood Tech Investing Report. Despite the drop, the sector scored some major deals including Toast’s $115 million Series D led by T. Rowe Price, which valued the company at $1.4 billion. Brazilian delivery startup Loggi was hot on its heels with a $111 million.
Here are the top 20 innovative food fundings from 2018:
- Toast – The Boston-based company completed a $115 million Series D led by T. Rowe Price for its POS restaurant software platform. It closed a $250 million Series E last month.
- Loggi – The Sao Paulo-based company completed a $111 million Series D led by SoftBank Vision Fund for its logistics tool.
- DTT – The Los Angeles-based company completed an $80 million debt financing led by CapitalSource, Capital One, and Administrative Agent for its video-based surveillance and loss prevention technologies.
- Bingobox – The Guangdong, China-based company completed an $80 million Series B led by GGV Capital and Forsun Capital for its unmanned convenience store technology.
- TouchBistro – The New York-based company completed a $70 million Series D led by OMERS Ventures and JP Morgan Chase & Co. for its iPad-based POS system that manages reservations and takes orders instantly.
- Ritual – The Great Lakes-based company completed a $70 million Series Series C led by Georgian partners for its social food ordering app for workers that leverages companies like Spotify and Goldman Sachs.
- Paytronix Systems, Inc. – The Newton, Mass.-based company completed a $65 million private equity round led by Great Hill Partners for its restaurant and retail sales technology that promotes customer loyalty.
- ShopKeep – The New York-based company completed a $65 million Series E led by Tribeca Venture Partners for its cloud-based iPad POS system.
- Meiwei Buyongdeng – The Shanghai-based company completed a $63 million Series D from Alibaba and Ctrip.com for its mobile app that helps restaurants manage their reservations while cutting customer waiting times.
- Ascend Wellness – The Boston-based company completed a $40 million venture round led by Shire Capital Advisors, Salveo Capital, Poseidon Asset Management, and JM10 Partners for its vertically integrated cannabis business.
- Crew – The San Francisco-based company completed a $35 million Series C led by Tenaya Capital and DAG Ventures for its communications app.
- Moka – The Jakarta-based company completed a $33 million Series B led by Sequoia Capital India for its fintech POS software geared towards medium and small businesses.
- Acewill – The Beijing-based company completed a $32 million Series C led by Meituan-Dianping for its SaaS catering technology.
- Farmer’s Fridge – The X-based company completed a $30 million Series C led by Innovation Endeavors for its vegetable-focused meals prepared daily at its kitchen.
- Merrco Payments – The Toronto, Canada-based company completed a $30 million private placement funding for its payments solution software for cannabis and other regulated industries.
- Bossa Nova Robotics Inc. – The San Francisco-based company completed a $29 million Series C led by Cota Capital for its real-time, on-shelf product data for the retail industry.
- CitiXsys – The New York-based company completed a $25 million Series B led by Housatonic Partners for its retail and hospitality industry software solutions.
- Coople – The Zurich-based company completed a $21 million venture round led by One Peak Partners, Harbert European Growth Capital, and Goldman Sachs Private Capital Investing for its on-demand jobs platform.
- Punchh, Inc. – The San Mateo-based company completed a $20 million Series B led by Sapphire Ventures for its digital marketing products aimed at brick and mortar retailers that taps AI and machine learning.
Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay
