India: Food delivery startup Faasos raises $30m from Ru-Net & return backers Sequoia, LightBox

Visual from company website, November 2015

By Anirvan Ghosh

January 14, 2016

Faasos Food Services, the Pune-based food delivery startup, has raised $30 million in a funding round led by Russian internet-focused investment firm Ru-Net.

Existing investors Sequoia Capital and Lightbox Ventures also participated in the round.

“That’s right, the deal has happened, and we participated,” said Prashant Mehta, partner with Lightbox and a member of Faasos board, in a chat with DEALSTREETASIA.

Ru-Net was advised by Link Legal India Law Services, while BMR Legal advised Faasos. Themis Associates advised Sequoia and Lightbox. All of the legal advisors are Indian law firms.

Faasos is among the best-funded startups in the sector, in part because of following a business model that focuses on control over food preparation and quality, and delivering within half an hour. It does not offer as many discounts as its competitors like Foodpanda and Tiny Owl, which have discounts for repeat customers leading to higher cash-burn and operational issues.

Faasos’ tech solution enables it to get food delivered from the center closest to the customer, reducing delivery time. On its app, the customer sees only those items that are in stock with the nearest centre. In a recent interview, founder Jaydeep Barman said, the company has full control over raw items and ingredients used in 160 distribution centres in India, and the quality of chefs preparing food for customers in central kitchens.

India’s fast food market is expected to double in size to $1 billion over the next three years, according to a report by Crisil Ltd.

Also read: Tiny Owl co-founder held hostage in Pune by laid-off employees

India: What’s happening at Zomato and Tiny Owl isn’t unexpected

Foodpanda to halt food delivery in 6 cities, fires 500 employees

We’re a food company, not food-tech: Jaydeep Barman, Faasos

 

Singapore Reporter/s

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Singapore Reporter/s

In Singapore, we are looking to double our reporting team by this year-end to comprehensively cover the fast-moving world of funded startups and VC, PE & M&A deals. We want reporters who can tell our readers what is really happening in these sectors and why it matters to markets, companies and consumers. The ability to write precisely and urgently is crucial for these roles. Ideal candidates must have to ability to work in a collaborative, dynamic, and fast-changing environment. We want our new hires to be digitally savvy and ready to experiment with new forms of storytelling. Most importantly, we are looking for hard-hitting reporters who work well in a team. Collaboration and collegiality are a must.

Following vacancies can be applied for (only in Singapore).

Following vacancies can be applied for (only in Singapore).   

  • A reporter to track companies/startups that have raised private capital, and have the potential to become unicorns. SEA currently has over 40 companies with a valuation of over $100 million and under $1 billion.
  • A reporter who can get behind the scenes and reveal how funding rounds are put together, or why they’ve failed to materialise. She/he in this role will largely focus on long-format stories. 
  • A journalist to track special situations funds, distressed debt and private credit (from the PE angle) across Asia.
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