SUMMARY
EazyDiner, backed by cricketer Yuvraj Singh, was valued at $39.99 Mn (INR 280 Cr)
EazyDiner will use a large part of the new funding to expand its presence and to improve its loyalty programme, EazyDiner Prime
John Price, chairman of Mars Pension Trustee, the UK-based pension fund of the US-based food giant Mars, will be joining Eazy-Diner’s board
Restaurant table reservation startup EazyDiner has raised $5.85 Mn (INR 41 Cr) in a Series B funding led by Denlow Investment Trust and early stage investment firm Beenext. Cricketer Yuvraj Singh is the brand ambassador of EazyDiner and earlier invested an undisclosed sum in the startup.
With this funding, EazyDiner was valued at $39.99 Mn (INR 280 Cr). The company plans to use a significant portion of the new funding to expand its presence and to improve its loyalty programme — EazyDiner Prime.
John Price, chairman of Mars Pension Trustee, the UK-based pension fund of the US-based food giant Mars, will be joining Eazy-Diner’s board.
This comes soon after the company raised $4.5 Mn in a funding round led by existing backers DSG Consumer Partners and Saama Capital in October last year.
Till date, the company has raised more than $9.95 Mn (INR 70 Cr) in funding.
Founded in 2015 by Vir Sanghvi and other top hoteliers, EazyDiner is a restaurant table reservation platform. It also counts Sue Reitz, Sachin Pabreja, Shruti Kaul, Ruchika Dhamija, and Manish Kutula among its founders.
At the time of launch, it was reported that EazyDiner had roped in several eminent people in its advisory council including the likes of Vikram Oberoi, joint MD of the Oberoi Group; Dinesh Nair, MD, The Leela Palaces; and Anjan Chatterjee, founder and CEO of Speciality Restaurants, among others.
At present, the company is serviceable in 11 cities across India and is setting up operations in Dubai. It plans to launch in five more cities over the next two months, starting with Hyderabad.
Table Reservation Apps Becoming Popular In India
Even as the Indian foodtech industry is growing at a fast rate, with food delivery majors such as Swiggy and Zomato joining the unicorn club, restaurant table reservation apps are also becoming increasingly popular in the country. Apart from food delivery, Zomato too offers a table reservation service on its app.
Recently, online restaurant reservation platform Eatigo raised a follow-on funding as part of its pre-Series C round from existing investor TripAdvisor.
Another premium dining programme — Dineout Plus — helps its members book tables at more than 150 five-star restaurants across Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Kolkata. Dineout also offers a 25% discount on the total bill for its subscribers.
With Indian foodtech startups sharpening their arsenal for the customer acquisition war, the sector is poised for further growth with no signs of abatement yet.
[The development was reported by ET.]
