Online food delivery service JustEat.in raises funding from Axon Partners & Forum Synergies

Bangalore-based Achindra Online Marketing Pvt Ltd, the company that owns and operates online food delivery site JustEat.in, has secured an undisclosed amount in funding from global investment firm Axon Partners Group and private equity firm Forum Synergies India.

"We plan to use the money to enhance our team, strengthen the restaurant presence and build consumer loyalty in our existing cities, while aggressively expanding into other metros of India," said JustEat CEO Ritesh Dwivedy.

The firm was originally started as Hungry Zone (in 2006) by IIT Kharagpur alumnus Dwivedy, in 2011. UK-based online takeaway ordering service JustEat acquired 60 per cent stake in the startup and rebranded it as JustEat India. The portal allows users to search for and locate restaurants of their choice and place orders/make reservations with the same.

According to the company, it has signed up approximately 2,500 restaurants in Bangalore, Delhi NCR and Mumbai, with thousands of regular consumers. The firm also provides users with restaurant listings, reviews, etc. for over 10,000 restaurants spread over 10 cities. It is now looking to expand its footprint to other cities including, Bhopal, Kolkata, Chandigarh, Goa, Indore, Hyderabad and Jaipur.

Madrid-headquartered Axon Partners is an investment firm with offices in Miami, Bogotá as well as Bangalore. It manages PE funds of more than $200 million, focusing on technology and innovation companies, and provides consulting services. It has clients in Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa. JustEat is the first investment by the firm in India.

Bangalore-based Forum Synergies India is running a $150 million India Knowledge-Manufacturing Fund for investment in the country. The firm is mainly focusing on engineering, healthcare, clean technology and information and communications technology (ICT), and invests primarily in unlisted SMBs in their growth and expansion phase.

"Considering the impressive EBITDA levels that online food delivery is achieving in mature markets, it is a positive move for Axon to co-invest in the market leader in India, alongside JustEat, the global market leader," said Axon president Francisco Velázquez.

Other investments in online food ordering space in 2013

Last week, Mumbai-based online food ordering service Deliverychef raised an undisclosed amount in angel funding from an Indian expat based in the US.

Early this month, popular restaurant and event-listing and review site Zomato raised a $37 million investment round led by Sequoia Capital, with participation from InfoEdge.

In May, Rocket Internet-backed food ordering site FoodPanda raised over $20M in funding from a group of investors, including Investment AB Kinnevik, a Sweden-based investment company and Phenomen Ventures, a Russia-based venture capital firm.

(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)