HelloFresh, an online recipe and ingredients ordering service, has closed a second round of investment as it looks to grow sales ten-fold in 2013. The growth round brings in Vorwerk Ventures with previous backers Rocket Internet, Holtzbrinck Ventures and Investment AB Kinnevik all taking part as well.
The emphasis of the platform is on healthy meals and taking the hassle of cooking for yourself. The undisclosed seven-figure sum will be used to help grow HelloFresh in its current markets of Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, France, Australia and the US.
Founded in December 2011 by Jessica Nilsson, Thomas Griesel and Dominik Richter, HelloFresh now has more than 100 employees working in Berlin and around the world.
Users can subscribe to receive a weekly box of recipes and pre-measured ingredients delivered to their door. The emphasis is on healthy food and balanced meals with the company sourcing the ingredients and planning the meals.
As many British expats will tell you, German supermarkets have a much more limited range than their counterparts in countries like the UK, and finding some niche ingredients can be difficult. Coupled with the fact that in Berlin at least, eating out often is cheaper than eating in, it can be difficult to force yourself to cook.
So HelloFresh, one of many similar projects cropping up aimed at making it easier to cook at home, could definitely be on to something. At €49 for five meals for two people plus free delivery and the satisfaction of eating healthy, the price competitive. There is no minimum subscription time and users can cancel their subscription with a notice period of four to eight days, depending on the country.
Co-founder Dominik Richter said HelloFresh would look to benefit from the “strategic perspective” of its new investor: “Right from the start of our talks they have shown great support for our philosophy and our sustainable approach to growing the business. We are also convinced that we will massively benefit from Vorwerk Ventures’ expertise in direct sales and social commerce… Our goal is to increase revenue ten-fold in 2013.”