Vancouver-based foodtech startup Uni-One has closed $10 million CAD ($7.4 million USD) in Series A funding to help it scale its supply chain network for grocers and restaurants across Canada and into the United States.
The all-equity, all-primary round saw participation from Celtic House Asia Partners and affiliate Celtic House Venture Partners, as well as Red River Investments, Banyan Pacific Capital, Fantuan, and others.
The startup claimed that the new funding gives Uni-One a post-money valuation of $60 million CAD.
“The current model of food distribution in North America still clings to many old-fashioned, outdated, and inefficient systems.”
Founded in 2017, Uni-One says it offers a tech-based food distribution network to restaurants and grocery businesses. A spokesperson for Uni-One told BetaKit the company’s solution includes a front-end sales service designed to streamline product selection and order placement, a logistics and dispatching system, inventory management software, procurement software, and a management dashboard.
”The current model of food distribution in North America still clings to many old-fashioned, outdated, and inefficient systems,” Uni-One’s founder and CEO Neil Gu said in a statement.
“Food distributors in East Asia are at the forefront of efficiency and technology. Based on their example, Uni-One has developed its in-house proprietary intelligent supply chain system that integrates procurement, warehouse management, logistic dispatching, and front-end order placing that will transform the food distribution industry in North America,” Gu added.
Uni-One is focusing its efforts on specific food segments, including Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Malaysian, Indian, and Thai cuisines. The firm brings brands like Chinese sparkling water brand Genki Forest , Want, and noodle brand Hao Huan Luo to grocery giants such as Loblaws, T&T Supermarket, and Walmart. The company also supplies restaurants, such as Yunshang Rice Noodle, Happy Tree House BBQ, and Jiyu Hot Thai Hot Pot, according to its website.
The startup’s spokesperson claimed that Uni-One is currently working with 500 grocery stores and 3,000 restaurants. The startup claimed its revenue run rate currently exceeds $100 million CAD.
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In a statement announcing the recent fundraise, David Adderley, managing partner at Celtic House Venture Partners, claimed the startup has doubled its annualized revenue run rate while remaining profitable since his firm first invested in the startup in 2023.
“Uni-One is disrupting the traditional food supply chain industry in Canada with its food wholesale, food services, and retail e-commerce platform,” Adderley said. “With its one-stop food supply chain cloud-based technology platform, Uni-One has worked to solve many of the pain points in the traditional food supply chain, providing streamlined and more efficient services to its restaurant, retail and wholesale customers.”
Uni-One will use the new funding to fund strategic mergers and acquisitions in both Canada and the United States. Uni-One said it has completed four acquisitions in Canada within the past few years and has three more set to close this year.
Uni-One’s spokesperson declined to disclose the names of those companies, but noted they include a meat processing plant in Vancouver, a seafood processing and distribution company in Montréal, and a food distributor in Calgary.
The funding will also help Uni-One extend its distribution services across Canada, and enter the US market at the end of this year. Prior to this expansion, Uni-One was only available in Vancouver, Victoria, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Toronto, the Okanagan region in BC, and Regina.
UPDATE (28/08/2024): A news release sent to BetaKit prior to the publication of this article erroneously stated that the round was co-led by Celtic House Asia Partners and Red River Investments. Following the publication of this story, a spokesperson for Uni-One clarified the Series A round had no lead investor, and additionally included participation from two other investors not previously known to BetaKit.
Feature image courtesy Unsplash. Photo by Fikri Rasyid.
