Chennai-based agri tech start-up Veg Route has raised $1.1 million in seed funding led by VGROW Ventures, an US-based venture capital firm of Ravi Shankar Kathirvelu, along with Mohan K and Jai Kumar (co-founders of Chennai-based Fintech Startup Ippopay), Hari TN, Co-Founder, Artha School of Entrepreneurship and Abhishek Raj Pandey, Head of Commercial Operations, Mama Earth with other angel investors from India, UAE and US.
In a press release, Veg Route said it will use the new funds to enhance tech and data-driven solutions for strengthening and revolutionising the fresh produce supply chain. It also plans to establish cold stored warehouses and invest in e-vehicles for last mile delivery operations besides extending support to farmers by establishing collection centers in smaller towns and villages of South India.
Founded in November 2020, Veg Route offers freshly hand-picked produce from farms to doorsteps of consumers in five cities. In January 2022, Veg Route raised $180,000 in the Pre-seed funding.
“Helping Farmers to sell their fresh produce at the right price and helping people from all walks of life to become our consumers by ensuring Best Quality - Right Pricing - Timely Delivery will make us expand and connect with 50,000 plus farmers to about 2.5 lakh consumers/day in 100+cities by 2025,” Shyam Prashad Rajasekaran, CEO, Veg Route, said.
Hari TN, an investor, said, “The market is big and current solutions are all suboptimal. There is a huge opportunity to significantly enhance customer experience with a razor-sharp focus on this one category, namely fruits and vegetables (F&V).”