E-commerce startups built on food continuing to finance, while investors are looking for sticky consumer concepts that can scale without breaking the bank. On Wednesday, Germany Lanche – that uses social media and influencers to develop popular food brands in addition to retail networks for distributing them – closed financing of € 26 million ($ 27 million) to expand its activities.
The Series A-round is also led by Felix and HV Capital. Lanch does not reveal its appreciation, but we understand that this is definitely an up-round. The startup has so far raised around $ 34 million (including this seed round in 2023) – so on normal Serie A – Veevouden, that probably brings it between $ 100 million and $ 150 million.
In an interview, Nono Konopka-de CEO said the company with Dominic Kluge, Jonas Meynert and Kevin Kock-that is the plan to use the financing to expand in Germany before moving to more markets.
So far, Lanch has developed three brands: Loco Chicken and Happy Slice Pizza, as well as the first packaged food, Happy Chips (Potato chips).
Lanch will use the game plan that has devised combining data IT sources from social media and other online activities to find out gaps in the market; Plus tapping makers/influencers to launch and endorse the foods – to add to that list too.
So far – and putting aside the fact that this is not particularly healthy – that formula has served the startup well. It said that, because it was commercially launched a year and a half ago, it was extended to 350 ghost kitchens that make its warm food – Loco -chicken especially popular – which in turn are sold in a growing number of franchise stores, but mainly through the delivery of Food platforms such as DieRando and Walt.
Together with personalities, Lanch is great in the German landscape of social media and has also achieved a few viral victories to stimulate his profile. It sold around 30,000 pizzas in the space of a weekend when the Happy Slice launched with a few online comics called Knossi and Trymacs. When it launched his first physical Loco chicken shop – of course the launch over Tiktok and other platforms had sown – it closed a neighborhood with crowds and the police had to be called in, Knopka said.
“Half of the population in Germany knows our brands,” said Konopka. “We are really aimed at building the next raging reed or chick-fil-a.”
He also said that the chips are now being sold in more than 10,000 supermarkets, and added that it will also announce a snack food.
The rise of Lanch underlines the rise of a new class of startup (and technology company) that leans on the comprehensive presence of social media, and the data that it entails, to build new types of products.
Konopka said he regards Lanch as a technology company because of how it uses data.
“It is incredibly difficult to find out where a restaurant must be opened, but we have 350 delivery locations [its ghost kitchens]And they give us a stunning amount of information, “he said. “Data that really specifically tells us where it makes sense for us to open a physical restaurant. That is a huge advantage. ”
This data also helps to identify what people like to eat to find out which food product should work on development. Moreover, there is the aspect of social media, who work on partnerships with influencers and users to promote their products and use these attention-based platforms to understand what people are interested in food-against a much cheaper costs than with involved physical tests Or perform large marketing campaigns.
Nevertheless, food -based technical startups have given industry and investors a lot of indigestion over the years.
The market for startups with fast delivery and online supermarket has been walked and collapsed, so that hundreds of millions of dollars in investments are being wiped out. D2C startups for food have also come and gone: over the years they have also collected hundreds of millions, only to find a lot of problems with supply chains and finding product market-fit (or simply not working like them said they would do that).
One reason why many D2C food startups never succeed is Felix’s Frederic Court, because they lean in expensive marketing exercises that provided unprofitable unity economy. Lanch’s more efficient cost base has been absolutely part of the attraction for investors, he said.
