On demand delivery market leader Calo today announced that they closed a $39 million Series B extension. That’s a huge step up from the $25 million they raised in their initial fundraising round back in December. AlJazira Capital led the new investment round. This new step reflects the company’s impressive rate of growth and an impressive plan for the international expansion to come.
The company reported delivering over 10 million meals across Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain last year. In a remarkable display of growth, Calo’s revenue nearly doubled in the past year, setting a strong foundation for its upcoming ventures. Calo will mainly focus their new funds on becoming established in the UK market. Ambit has committed to a tenfold increase in revenue over the next three years!
Calo focuses on prepared meals, allowing customers to easily heat up their meal when it’s best for them. It’s also bought a pair of local meal delivery companies—Fresh Fitness Food and Detox Kitchen. In the wake of these acquisitions, the company focused its efforts on integrating its technology and processes into the platforms they acquired. Retrospectively, it badassly pulled this shift off without firing a single worker.
By July, Calo was through the integration process with flying colors. Since then, the firm has stepped up a marketing blitz to trumpet its new fare here in the UK. Today, it provides healthy meals every day throughout London. In addition, it largely supports other parts of the UK two or three times a week.
As for Calo, continued expansion is a top priority, with eyes peeled for more exciting opportunities to expand physical presence. So far, they’ve had conversations with more than 50 meal subscription companies from around the globe, from the U.S. to Asia. Through this outreach, we hope to discover the most dynamic and promising markets for future expansion.
Calo’s founder, Ahmed Al Rawi, emphasized the company’s commitment to growth in the UK. He added that they’re in the process of trying to buy out other meal-kit industries around the world.
“Calo represents a compelling opportunity at the intersection of healthtech, foodtech, and consumer subscription models.” – Rawan AlRasheed
As Calo makes its debut into the hyper-competitive UK market, it will find itself facing steep hurdles. New players, including entrenched established food delivery giants Just Eat and Deliveroo and meal-box enterprisers Gusto and Wicked Kitchen are already flooding the category. Despite those challenges, the company’s creative model and deep-pocketed support make it well-poised for success.
