Supply chain Start-up WayCool Foods raises $7.8 million in debt
Supply chain Start-up WayCool Foods raises $7.8 million in debt

Farm-to-fork supply chain start-up WayCool Foods has raised $7.8 million (about ₹57 crore) in debt from Sammunati, RBL Bank and Innoven Capital.

This follows the earlier debt financing round of $5.5 million which was guaranteed by United States International Development Finance Corporation (USIDFC) and financed by IndusInd Bank.

They have also raised the Series C round of $32 million led by Lightbox earlier this year.

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The latest funding will be utilised for meeting working capital needs and to boost automation in the existing distribution centres and warehouses, shared a statement.

“The latest debt round completes the funding requirements for the company’s annual business plan. It will be used to support select new lines of growth and build related physical as well as digital assets,” said Chinna Pardhasaradhi, CFO, WayCool Foods.

The supply-chain startup aims to achieve 70 per cent digital and mechanical automation across all distribution units by mid-2021, in turn improving process flow, efficiency, and eliminating error-prone mundane activities.

“Samunnati and InnoVen capital have been our long-term partners in growth, and the present funding lines are a natural evolution of this partnership. We welcome RBL Bank to our platform. The innovative instruments that we are developing in partnership with RBL Bank will free the business from working capital as a growth limiter,” added Karthik Jayaraman, CEO, WayCool Foods.

Started by Karthik Jayaraman and Sanjay Dasari in July 2015, the startup chose to pivot to a farm-to-fork B2B model.

May Interest: Supply chain startup WayCool Foods receives $ 114K from Dutch Development Bank FMO

WayCool’s has categories such as food services (hotels, restaurants, caterers), processing and bakeries; general trade or sale to kirana stores and local supermarkets; and modern trade or sale to national supermarket chains and online distribution players.

WayCool has previously raised three rounds of equity funding from Lightbox, LGT Lightstone Aspada, and FMO, and has raised debt in the past from Caspian Impact Investment and Northern Arc Capital Ltd.

 
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