Exclusive: Inflection Point Ventures backs food-tech startup Samosa Party

Samosa Party Foods, a Bengaluru-based food-tech company that owns and operates an eponymous cloud kitchen platform, has raised an undisclosed amount in its first institutional funding round from Inflection Point Ventures (IPV). 

The company plans to use the capital raised in this round, which it dubs a pre-Series A round, to scale up its business, set up more cloud kitchens in Bengaluru and expand to other tier-1 cities.

“We will soon launch three more cloud kitchen-based snack brands and expand our footprint. Our differentiator is the production technology applied at our commissary and with the funds raised, we want to further strengthen our production technology,” Amit Nanwani, co-founder of Samosa Party told TechCircle.

The company, launched in 2017 by Nanwani and Diksha Pande, delivers tea, samosas and other Indian snacks in Bengaluru. While NIT Bhopal alumnus Nanwani has worked across technology and consulting domains, Pande has expertise in the food technology industry, having worked in leadership roles at Oberoi Hotels, Pizza Hut and Chai Point. 

With seven cloud kitchens in the city, it claims to have achieved all its revenue targets, even amid the lockdown. It has sold an average of 1.5 lakh samosas and fulfilled over 30,000 orders every month, with 78% repeat customers, according to Nanwani. The company claims to have clocked a run rate of Rs 7 crore in financial year 2019-20, with a double-digit positive EBITDA. 

“We are excited to partner with IPV and have their support in our journey. With their mentor and investor network, they are already helping us forge some strategic partnerships,” Nanwani said.

Samosa Party marks the ninth investment for IPV in the past 90 days. 

Last week, it announced joining Milkbasket’s Series B funding round with a $1.9 million investment. Prior to that, it wrote a $150,000 cheque for Bengaluru-based edtech startup Edvizo. 

It has also backed edtech platform Pedagogy, media tech company Toch, healthtech startup Phable, food and beverage startup Fabbox and telemedicine platform Remedo.

Founded in 2017, IPV is an investment initiative floated by a group of CFOs and finance professionals working for Indian startups. Nine such executives from startups, including Myntra, BookMyShow and Grofers, are part of the programme.

“Being sector agnostic, we invest in tech and B2C business, provided it meets our stringent due diligence criteria. Samosa Party meets those parameters. They are selling the most loved Indian snack and are doubling down on the snacking market by introducing new cloud kitchen brands. Even during the lockdown, they were able to maintain healthy monthly sales and continued to remain EBITDA positive. And as we embrace the new normal, focus of consumers will be on trustworthy, hygienic food brands and we believe Samosa Party fits here well and will benefit from this trend,” Ankur Mittal, co-founder of IPV, said.