Chowdeck, a leading on-demand delivery service in Nigeria, has raised $2.5 million in seed capital to help improve operations and expand to more locations in the country.
YCombinator, Goodwater Capital, FounderX Ventures, Hoaq Fund, Levare Ventures, True Culture Funds, and Haleakala Ventures were among the investors in the seed funding round.
Co-founders of Rappi, the largest online delivery company in Latin America, are Simon Borrero and Juan Pablo Ortega; co-founders of Paystack, one of the top fintech companies in Africa, are Shola Akinlade and Ezra Olubi. Sudeep Ramani (Sportybet), Ayo Arikawe (Thrive Agric), and Karthik Ramakrishnan (Amazon) also took part as angel investors. Stripe paid $200 million for the company.
After launching in October 2021 following the COVID-19 lockdown in Lagos, Chowdeck has amassed over 500,000 users and over 3,000 riders who serve eight Nigerian cities (Lagos, Abuja, Ibadan, Port-Harcourt, Ilorin, Benin City, Abeokuta, and Asaba) and typically earn the same as senior civil servants in Nigeria. With this additional capital, Chowdeck will be able to further establish its market dominance in these areas and provide the foundation for growth in other Nigerian cities.
On-demand delivery services have grown significantly in Nigeria in recent years, driven by a variety of factors such as changing consumer tastes, better payment mechanisms, rising smartphone and internet use, and more.
For instance, it can be difficult for consumers to shop for groceries, meals, or other items in large cities due to excessive traffic, which makes time-saving delivery services more appealing.
With the resolution of numerous issues that hindered earlier attempts to offer on-demand delivery services, this development trend is expected to continue.
Customers may purchase food on Chowdeck, the fastest delivery service available in Africa right now, and have it delivered to their door in about 30 minutes on average.
Food sellers may use the startup’s efficient logistics system to deliver meals to customers with ease, and customers can use it to easily order meals from their favorite restaurants in their city.
Additionally, the business has worked with other popular quick-service restaurants, including Burger King, Bukka Hut, Chicken Republic, and others, to boost sales and offer infrastructure for logistics and other services that facilitate better customer experiences.
Femi Aluko, CEO and co-founder of Chowdeck said, “We know that Nigerians love good food, and we just want to make it as easy as possible for them to access the food they desire. Chowdeck was birthed to fulfill this purpose and we are committed to delivering truly excellent experiences for our customers, vendors, and riders. We are pleased with the success we have achieved to date and excited to have raised these funds that will enable us to replicate that success in more parts of Nigeria and add value to our customers, vendors, and riders in as many ways as we can.”
With this additional capital, Chowdeck will be able to further establish its market dominance in these areas and provide the foundation for growth in other Nigerian cities.
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