Unisync-Newsletter-Nov24
Unisync-Newsletter-Nov24
Unisync-Newsletter-Nov24
04
Theme Article
17
Startup Updates
& Fundings
06
Case Studies
18
Book Review
11
Top Food Tech 19
Startups in India Event Update
Unisync Angels
Offers startups access to funding, expert mentorship, networking opportunities, strategic
insights, and resources to accelerate growth and enhance market presence.
Culinary Incubator:
A program that provides resources and support for food entrepreneurs
to develop and launch their products.
02
MESSAGE FROM THE FOUNDER’S DESK
WORLD OF FOOD STARTUPS
D ear Readers,
03
THEME ARTICLE
FOOD STARTUPS
R evenue in the Food market amounts to
US $9.09tn in 2024. The market is expected to Marketplaces
grow annually by 6.48% (CAGR 2024 - 2029). In
global comparison, most revenue is generated Blinkit Flipkart
in China (US $1,603bn in 2024). In relation to
total population figures, per person revenues of BigBasket
US $1,173.00 are generated in 2024.In the Food
market, 7.5% of total revenue is generated Zepto Licious
through online sales. Food market is expected
to show a volume growth of 3.9% in 2025.
The food startup market is growing, with the Tea delivery startups
food delivery segment in India expected to
reach Rs 2 lakh crore by 2030. The food tech
industry is also expected to grow at a Chaayos
compound annual growth rate of 5.57% until
2028, reaching a market size of $360.1 billion.
Upcycled Food:
Products made from food ingredients that would otherwise go to waste.
Startups focus on reducing food waste by repurposing surplus ingredients
05 into nutritious and sustainable food products.
CASE STUDIES
REBEL FOODS (FAASOS): THE GLOBAL CLOUD KITCHEN GIANT
Milestone
Overview
Rebel Foods, founded in 2011, began as a physical restaurant brand (Faasos) before pivoting to a
cloud kitchen model in 2015. Rebel Foods operates multiple virtual restaurant brands such as
Behrouz Biryani, Oven Story, Mandarin Oak, and Faasos under a single platform.
Key Achievements
Global Expansion: Rebel Foods expanded its cloud kitchens to over 10 countries, including the
UAE, UK, Indonesia, and Singapore, becoming one of the largest cloud kitchen operators globally
Scalability: Rebel Foods manages 4,000+ cloud kitchens globally, powered by advanced
technology and a hyper-efficient supply chain that allows the company to scale rapidly in new
markets
Valuation: The company hit unicorn status in 2021 and continues to attract investment, raising
$155 million in 2023 to fuel further expansion..
Challenges Addressed
Rebel Foods solved the high overhead costs of traditional restaurants by embracing the asset-light
cloud kitchen model. This allowed them to scale multiple brands simultaneously without the need
for physical retail spaces.
Launched by Rebel Foods
06
CASE STUDIES
BIG BASKET: REVOLUTIONIZING ONLINE GROCERY DELIVERY
Milestone
Overview
BigBasket, founded in 2011, is India's largest online grocery delivery service. It addressed a critical
consumer need for a reliable and convenient grocery shopping experience, especially in urban areas
where traffic congestion and busy lifestyles limited physical shopping.
Key Achievements
Supply Chain Mastery: Big Basket has created one of the most efficient supply chain networks
in India, with dark stores and micro-fulfillment centers that enable rapid delivery of fresh
groceries.
Acquisition: BigBasket was acquired by Tata Group in 2021, further strengthening its position in
the online grocery market and giving it access to vast resources to scale.
Food Safety:
Innovation in Delivery: BigBasket
Practices launched "BB
and regulations Daily," that
ensuring offering
foodearly morning
products aredelivery
safe forof fresh
milk and daily essentials.
consumption, vital for maintaining consumer trust.
Challenges Addressed
BigBasket overcame the logistical complexity of ensuring the freshness of perishable goods by
investing in a robust cold storage infrastructure and a technology-enabled distribution network.
07
CASE STUDIES
CHAI POINT: SCALING A BEVERAGE BUSINESS WITH TECH
Milestone
Overview
Founded in 2010, Chai Point began as a chain of tea stores, offering a convenient option for India’s
beloved beverage. The company later evolved into a tech-driven business, offering a range of
beverages through retail stores, cloud kitchens, and vending machines (boxC).
Key Achievements
Omnichannel Presence: Chai Point expanded its distribution channels, operating not only
physical outlets but also delivering chai through cloud kitchens and vending machines in offices.
Tech Adoption: With the launch of boxC, a proprietary tea and coffee vending machine, Chai
Point catered to large corporate clients and became a B2B player, expanding its customer base
significantly.
Challenges Addressed
Chai Point solved the challenge of providing consistent quality across various distribution channels
by implementing a technology-enabled supply chain and automating beverage preparation in
vending machines.
Sustainability:
Practices that promote environmental health and
resource conservation in food production and consumption.
08
CASE STUDIES
LICIOUS: PIONEERING FRESH MEAT DELIVERY
Milestone
Overview
Founded in 2015, Licious started with a simple mission: to deliver fresh, hygienically packed meat
and seafood directly to customers. Licious quickly gained traction by addressing a major gap in the
Indian market—access to high-quality, fresh, and clean meat products. The company adopted an
end-to-end supply chain model, ensuring quality control from farm to fork.
Key Achievements
Growth: Licious has expanded its operations across 20+ cities in India and built a loyal customer
base of over 2 million.
Product Innovation: The startup diversified its offerings beyond raw meat to include marinated
meats, ready-to-cook products, and cold cuts, catering to consumers' growing demand for
convenience.
Funding: Licious secured $150 million in its Series E round in 2023, giving it a strong capital
base to scale further.
Challenges Addressed
Licious tackled the challenge of inconsistent meat quality in India by building its own infrastructure
for sourcing, processing, and delivering fresh products within 90-120 minutes
Allergen-Free Foods:
Products designed for individuals with food allergies or
intolerances, catering to a growing market of health-
09 conscious consumers.
CASE STUDIES
THE WHOLE TRUTH FOODS: TRANSFORMING HEALTHY SNACKING
Milestone
Overview
Founded by Shashank Mehta in 2019, The Whole Truth Foods entered the competitive snacking
market with a mission to offer "clean-label" snacks with no added sugar, preservatives, or hidden
ingredients. Shashank was driven by his own struggles with understanding food labels and
unhealthy eating habits.
Key Achievements
Trust and Transparency: The brand is known for its transparent labeling, listing every ingredient
on the front of its packaging.
Strong Consumer Loyalty: The Whole Truth Foods rapidly gained popularity among health-
conscious consumers, especially millennials.
Brand Growth: The startup has expanded into energy bars, nut butters, and protein mixes,
available both online and offline.
Challenges Addressed
Convincing price-sensitive Indian consumers to pay a premium for clean-label snacks required
emphasizing long-term health benefits and building loyalty. Additionally, intense competition from
global and local players challenged the brand, but its unique transparency and clean ingredients
helped differentiate it. Through these efforts, The Whole Truth Foods built trust and a loyal customer
base, especially among millennials.
10
Top Food Tech startups in India
Zomato Curefoods
Online platform offering a Cloud-kitchen platform offering
discovery platform for food on-demand food. It develops
ordering and delivery from and manages food brands and
restaurants. It enables users to products including cloud
discover restaurants, browse kitchens, QSRs, and
Founded Year: Founded Year:
2008 the menus, and order food. The 2020 restaurants. It offers pizzas,
platform allows restaurants to biryanis, parathas, cakes, rice
Gurugram add its name in the website. Its Bengaluru preparations, ice creams, tools,
(India) mobile application is available (India) and more
on Android and iOS platforms.
Key facts about Curefoods
Key facts about Zomato
Stage: Series D
Stage: Public Funding: $191M
Funding: $1.69B Investors: Accel, Brand
Investors: Temasek, Fidelity Capital and 59 Others
Investments and 48 Others
Swiggy EatClub
App-based platform providing Provider of virtual network of
food, grocery, and parcel delivery restaurant for ordering food. It
services. The platform enables enables users to discover
users to discover restaurants,
multiple types of restaurants
dine-in, and order food. It also
from nearby locations. The
Founded Year: allows users to order groceries Founded Year:
2014 such as fruits, vegetables, 2012 customers can order food
beverages, meat, seafood, and online, and have them delivered
Bengaluru more. It also provides documents Mumbai home. It offers desi meals,
(India) and medicine deliveries. The (India) biryani, wraps, and more. The
mobile application is available on services are available in cities
both Android and iOS platforms. like Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore,
and Gurgaon.
Key facts about Swiggy
Key facts about EatClub
Stage: Series K
Funding: $3.62B
Investors: Goldman Sachs, Stage: Series D
Bessemer Venture Partners Funding: $75.7M
and 66 Others Investors: Mayfield, Tiger
Global Management and 79
Others
11
UrbanPiper EazyDiner
Provider of cloud-based EazyDiner is an online platform
restaurant management for booking tables at
software. The company offers a restaurants. It allows users to
SaaS platform for restaurants reserve tables, get pre-paid
and food businesses with discounted meals & vouchers,
Founded Year: Founded Year:
2015 features that include billing, 2014 get reviews, and more. The
returns tracking, restaurant company offers mobile
Bengaluru POS, ordering automation, Gurugram applications for Android and
(India) customer account profiles, (India) iOS devices.
barcode scanning, loyalty
program, sales tracking, Key facts about EazyDiner
eCommerce, and inventory
management. Stage: Series C
Funding: $21.1M
Key facts about UrbanPiper Investors: Saama Capital,
Beenext and 16 Others
Stage: Series B
Funding: $32.3M
Investors: Tiger Global
Management, Peak XV
Partners and 30 Others
HungerBox Dalchini
Provider of cafeteria Provider of meal vending
management solutions. The machines. It enables users to
platform provides digital locate vending machines based
solutions including food menu on the location and order using
designing, food safety audit, the app by scanning the code
Founded Year: Founded Year:
2015 recommendations, and more. 2017 at vending machines. The
mobile application is available
Bengaluru Key facts about HungerBox Noida for both Android and iOS
(India) (India) platforms.
Stage: Series C
Funding: $50.4M Key facts about Dalchini
Investors: Shinhan Venture
Investment, Pratithi Stage: Series A
Investments and 31 Others Funding: $6.73M
Investors: Texport
Industries, Unicorn India
Ventures and 28 Others
Culinary Experiences:
Startups that create food-related events, workshops, or unique dining
experiences (e.g., pop-up restaurants, cooking classes).
12
Food Tech Startups Revolutionising India’s Food Ecosystem
Founders: Abhinav Sinha, Abhishek Sinha, Deepak Parihar & Shruti Sonali
GoodDO is a vegan kiosk chain founded by the same team behind plant-
based food tech Good Dot. The core mission of GoodDO is to popularise
veganism by serving a range of dishes made from Good Dot’s mock meats,
catering to both local appetites and those looking for an international fast
food bite. Some of their dishes include chicken tikka, curry bowls, biriyani, as
well as its vegan <Gurber=, which has notably reached price parity with its
conventional meat counterpart at McDonald’s. They currently operate
across 3 different Indian cities and will be opening more outlets soon.
EVO Foods is India’s first and leading plant-based egg startup using food
science and plant biochemistry to develop a vegan egg alternative, which
they hope will catalyse much needed disruption for a more sustainable food
system. The Mumbai-based food tech’s first product is a 100% plant-based
liquid egg made from protein derived from lentils, which contains no
cholesterol and antibiotics. It recently received angel investment from
veteran vegan entrepreneur and investor Ryan Bethencourt as well as US-
Asia impact investment firm Big Idea Ventures.
13
Mister Veg Founding Date: 2018
Food Safety:
Practices and regulations ensuring that food products are safe for
consumption, vital for maintaining consumer trust.
15
PlantByte Foods Founding Date: 2017
Meati Foods (Plant-based Food Tech): Raised $150 million in NotCo (AI Food Tech): Raised $45 million to develop its proprietary
Series C funding led by Revolution Growth, focusing on creating food technology that uses AI to create plant-based food products.
whole-cut meat alternatives using mycelium.
Sweetgreen (Fast Casual Restaurant): Completed a $90 million Yumble (Kids Meal Delivery): Raised $30 million to enhance its
Series G funding round to enhance its digital ordering capabilities subscription service for healthy, pre-prepared meals for children
and expand its restaurant locations.
Oatly (Dairy Alternatives): Raised $75 million in equity funding to Plantible Foods (Plant-based Protein): Secured $25 million in a
strengthen its production capacity and product development. funding round to further its research and development in plant-
based protein sources
The Good Food Institute (Non-profit for Plant-based Foods): Secured $50
million in a funding initiative aimed at promoting plant-based alternatives.
16
STARTUP UPDATES & FUNDINGS:
Swiggy launches 10-min food delivery service 8Bolt9: Magicpin becomes largest food delivery seller app
Swiggy has launched a new 10-minute food delivery on ONDC: On Tuesday, Magicpin announced its
service called "Bolt" in select cities. The service position as the largest food delivery seller on the
focuses on quick-to-prepare meals from popular Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC),
restaurants within a 2-kilometer radius. With Bolt, processing nearly 150,000 daily orders. Since joining
Swiggy delivers from over 2,700 restaurants, ONDC in March 2023, it has increased restaurant
including KFC, McDonald's, and Starbucks, all within partnerships from 22,000 to 70,000 by September
10 minutes. Currently operational in Bengaluru, 2024. Within four weeks of launching, Magicpin
Chennai, Hyderabad, New Delhi, Mumbai, and Pune, boosted its orders from 100 to 10,000 in May 2023,
Bolt plans to expand to more areas soon. reaching 150,000 orders this year.
Zomato9s total income crosses Rs 5,000 Cr in Q2 Curefoods in talks to buy Krispy Kreme from Dubai9s
FY25, posts Rs 176 Cr PAT: Zomato, a leader in food Landmark Group: Curefoods is in talks with Dubai's
technology and quick commerce, achieved Landmark Group to acquire the rights to sell Krispy
impressive quarter-on-quarter growth of 68.5% in its Kreme doughnuts in India, ahead of its upcoming $40
operating revenue, which rose to Rs 4,799 crore in Q2 million funding round. The negotiations may also lead
FY25, compared to Rs 2,848 crore in Q2 FY24. This to Landmark Group investing in Curefoods' ongoing
growth was primarily driven by the expansion of $40 million round. Curefoods' existing backer
Zomato's core food delivery business, its B2B Chiratae Ventures has committed around $15 million
Hyperpure vertical, and Blinkit. Additionally, Zomato’s in the funding round, valued at $450-500 million. The
board has approved a resolution to raise Rs 8,500 deal discussions are still in the early stages, and
crore through qualified institutional investors. This some contours could change.
decision comes at a time when Zomato's competitor,
Swiggy, is preparing for a public listing.
Consumer food brand Yu raises Rs 55 Cr in Series B round: Consumer food brand Yu has successfully raised ₹55
crore ($6.5 million) in a Series B funding round, co-led by Ashish Kacholia and the Asian Promoter Group.The
company reports that some of its seed-stage investors have realized over four times their original investment,
providing them with a significant exit opportunity.The new funds will be utilized to enhance distribution,
strengthen its food portfolio, and expand its beverage range, which includes the newly launched line of 100% fruit
juices, as stated in a press release from Yu.
18
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