Freshket, a tech-enabled food supply chain platform, has raised $23.5 million in its series B funding round, according to an AsiaTechDesk.com report
The funding was led by SET-listed PTT Oil and Retail Business Public Company Limited and saw participation from Openspace, Betagro Holding, a company owned by the Taepaisitphongses and shareholder of Betagro Public Company Limited, ORZON Ventures, and Volta Circle.
Freshket was founded in 2017 with an aim to provide consumers and food businesses with a wide variety of agricultural produce and the freshest ingredients, always sourced from local farmers and suppliers.
Today, Freshket delivers premium quality raw ingredients, dry goods and various food products to doorsteps of customers, which is primarily restaurateurs and hoteliers but also household consumers.
This customer focus is driven by a fresh produce market for restaurant and hotel industries in Thailand that is worth nearly 200 billion Baht (US$5.9 billion) in annual purchases.
This financing round will bolster Freshket as it enhances its operating system through supply chain tech development, improves service efficiency, penetrates into new categories of products and extends its in-demand service to other provinces.
Freshket will also focus on the development of demand forecasting technology to ensure transparency for all parties, the reduction of food waste, and effort to boost the quality of life for upstream entrepreneurs.
Ultimately, these improvements will ensure even more customers can enjoy the freshest quality products at reasonable prices, with convenience of online ordering and confidence in Freshket’s service reliability.
For those reasons, Freshket is now trusted by restaurateurs and hoteliers as well as household consumers, who spend approximately 100-million-Baht (US$2.9 million) on orders of fresh produce per month, even in the face of the epidemic and economic slowdown. That represents a 3x volume growth on what was being achieved during the Series A funding round only 20 months ago.
“This funding round was part of a key strategy designed to catapult the brand to achieving rapid and progressive growth this year. Freshket will grow alongside its business networks, OR group’s distribution channels as well as other joint investors, while also developing and launching products and services shaped to meet the needs of more users,” said Komjak Rattakham, chief of staff of Freshket.