HungryPanda, a specialist online food delivery platform serving Asian restaurants and overseas Chinese populations, has announced $20 million in funding led by Laurel Bowden from 83North and Antoine Nussanbaum from Felix Capital. The investment will be used to accelerate the growth of its team, build technology innovation and most importantly accelerate its global expansion, with a strong focus on the US market.
Founded in the UK in 2017, the company has grown fast and now operates in 31 cities across the UK, North America, ANZ and Europe. It employs over 300 people. As the global leader in this specialist marketplace, HungryPanda is the only business of its type with substantial presence across three continents.
This new investment will allow the business to pursue ambitious plans to reach an annual run rate of $200 million by May 2020.
Already operating profitably in the UK and New York, HungryPanda plans to launch in 18 cities in the US in 2020.
“The US is strategically important to us and it will be our primary focus in 2020,” said Eric Liu, CEO of HungryPanda. “We bring global experience and expertise in this market, which has already made us the leader in a number of cities in the US, including New York where our order volume is almost four times more than the closest competitor.”
HungryPanda’s online ordering platform provides a tailored user experience to overseas Chinese users to help them overcome cultural and language barriers. It also enables Asian restaurants to connect with the right customers and provide an efficient delivery service.
HungryPanda joins 83North’s food delivery investment portfolio, which also includes well-known international brands such as Just Eat and Wolt. Felix Capital also has existing investments in food delivery success stories including Deliveroo and Frichti.
“This is an exciting time for this specialist market. People are demanding authentic cuisine and a tailored experience that fits with their cultural background. HungryPanda is the best team out there with vision, drive and most importantly effective execution to serve this market,” said David Buttress, independent non-executive board director of HungryPanda and former CEO of Just Eat.
“We are delighted to secure the backing of 83North and Felix Capital to bring our unique service to more people in more places,” explained Eric Liu. “Their unrivalled industry investment experience, coupled with our ability to focus on the precise needs of our customers and launch in each new city within a two-week window, means we are in an ideal position to significantly scale the business to meet the huge levels of demand created by Chinese cuisine.”
The company also highlighted it is already working to secure its next funding round to support its longer-term vision.