Location-based online food ordering startup TinyOwl raises $3M from Sequoia, Nexus

TinyOwl Technology Pvt Ltd, a Mumbai-based startup that offers a location-based mobile app for food ordering, has secured $3 million in its Series A round of funding from Sequoia Capital and Nexus Venture Partners.

The startup will use these funds to expand its presence in Mumbai as well as to other metro cities in the country, it said in a press release.

In August, VCCircle had first reported TinyOwl's fundraise from Sequoia and Nexus.

Founded in March 2014 by a group of IIT Bombay alumni, TinyOwl allows users to order food from restaurants and have it delivered at their doorstep. Consumers can manage the entire process including selecting and ordering the dishes and tracking the delivery. Users can either make payments through their card or opt for cash-on-delivery.

The service is currently available only in certain locations in Mumbai that include Powai, Andheri, Ghatkopar, Vikhroli, Kanjurmarg, Mulund, Bhandup, Jogeshwari, Goregaon and Malad. The app is available on Android and iOS platforms.

"In less than six months since launched, TinyOwl has emerged as the market leader in Mumbai. We have grown to more than 3,500 delivery restaurants in Mumbai and are servicing thousands of happy customers every day," said Harshvardhan Mandad, co-founder and CEO of TinyOwl.

"We aim to offer the best personalised experience to our users and are setting up a data science team and research lab for this," he added.

"We believe that the food ordering experience will make a quantum leap in the era of smartphones, and look forward to partnering with the TinyOwl team in their quest to make this a reality," said Gautam Mago, principal, Sequoia Capital India.

Suvir Sujan, co-founder & MD of Nexus Venture Partners, said, "The food ordering industry needs technological and operational solutions to help make the discovery, order taking and delivery of food more efficient. There is no better team in the country than TinyOwl to address this."

Online food ordering is one of the hottest sectors in India that has seen a lot of action, of late. Leading players in the space include Rocket Internet-backed Foodpanda.com and Axon Partners Group-backed JustEat.in.

Last month, Foodpanda acquired Delivery Hero-backed online food ordering venture TastyKhana for an undisclosed amount. Recently, Mumbai-based hybrid startup incubation platform Antfarm Business Incubator Pvt Ltd (Ant Farm) acquired city-based food delivery venture Meals on Wheels, run by Meal O Wheel Pvt Ltd, in a stock-and-cash deal. A few months ago, Mumbai-based online business directory Just Dial also forayed into this segment.

(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)