Foodtech Startup InnerChef Raises $2.5 Mn From Japanese Fund Mistletoe, Others

Online food ordering platform InnerChef has secured $2.5 Mn in a funding round led by Japanese fund Mistletoe. Its existing investor M&S Partners also participated in the round.

The investing party, Mistletoe is backed and owned by Taizo Son, serial entrepreneur and youngest brother of SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son. InnerChef is Mistletoe’s maiden investment in India.

The raised funds will be used to enhance operations in its market in the cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad. It will also be used to enhance technology on both front and back ends.

InnerChef was launched in April 2015 by Rajesh Sawhney, Sanjeev Singhal and Bal Dighent. It allows its users to choose a dish from the available menu and place the order online on their app. The team, consisting of chefs, prepares the sauces and seasonings required to cook a particular dish and packages them to precise measurement along with simple recipe instructions to follow.

Commenting on the investment, Rajesh Sawhney, co-founder, InnerChef said, “I believe this round is about creating a partnership between two organisations- InnerChef and Mistletoe that have a shared vision of future with regards to food and agriculture. I also think InnerChef has a very different vision and a differentiated product experience from the rest of the companies.”

InnerChef had previously raised $1.66 Mn (INR 11 Cr) in its pre-series A round of funding in a round led by Paytm’s Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Anupam Mittal of Shaadi.com among others in September 2015. In the same month, InnerChef had also announced the launch of a hyperlocal desserts marketplace called Indulge.

In March this year, InnerChef acquired two startups in the foodtech domain including Bengaluru-based EatonGo and Gurugram-based Flavour Labs.