Food delivery services company, Misfits Market, has raised a $85 million series B funding led by Valor Equity Partners with participation from additional investors including Greenoaks Capital, Third Kind Venture Capital, and Sound Ventures.
The U.S. startup was launched by Abhi Ramesh in 2018 with a goal to deliver organic fruits and vegetables unwanted by grocery stores due to cosmetic imperfections or excess supply at a discounted price.
“We’ve been a mission-driven company since day one,” Ramesh said in a prepared statement. “What’s different today is how pressing it is for us to accelerate our growth.”
He notes how COVID-19 is pushing Americans to find more affordable ways to get fresh, healthy food delivered safely, and that has driven the consumer demand for Misfits Market to grow by 400% over the past three months.
“This investment will help us reach more people for whom our product will be essential, whether they’re sustainably minded individuals interested in the rescued produce or they’re a big household with a newly tightened grocery budget shopping the expanded Marketplace for discounted staples,” Ramesh added. “Everyone deserves access to healthy food.”
Misfits Market is also opening a new, state-of-the-art warehouse in New Jersey that will help the company double its order capacity across the East Coast, and enter more Southern and Midwestern markets, including Arkansas, Mississippi, Wisconsin, and Michigan.
Jonathan Shulkin, partner at Valor Equity Partners, expects Misfits Market to become the affordable online grocer of the future, and said he would be joining the company as a board of director.
“Food waste and food access are both extraordinarily important problems, especially in today’s macro environment, and Misfits has built a unique, tech-forward approach to solving both,” Shulkin said in a statement.
Additionally, Misfits Markets is expanding its online grocery store platform through which subscribers can purchase CPG brands, such as Taza Chocolate, Bob’s Red Mill, Minor Figures Oat Milk, Teatulia, and Ceremony Coffee at an average of 25% to 50% off retail prices.
“We are committed to sustainable business practices and it is reassuring to know that any surplus we produce will be taken care of by a rescuer like Misfits Market.” said Alex Whitmore, founder and CEO of Taza Chocolate.
“Our established partnership with Misfits Market proved to be invaluable during the consumer shift in shopping patterns as a result of COVID. They have been a reliable and supportive partner that has allowed us to minimize business disruption and minimize product waste during an extremely challenging time.”
Misfits Market notes the online platform expansion is part of its digital innovation roadmap, and will launch a feature that allows consumers to fully customize their subscription boxes by the end of the summer.
Douglas Yu is an American entrepreneur with unique insights and knowledge about consumer packaged goods gained from his years of experience writing about the industry as
Douglas Yu is an American entrepreneur with unique insights and knowledge about consumer packaged goods gained from his years of experience writing about the industry as a business and financial journalist. Having an established reputation as the U.S. candyman, Douglas has previously been approached by several mainstream media outlets, including NPR Marketplace, Bloomberg Radio and The Washington Post, for industry opinions. He can be reached at [email protected]