Haochushi, a China-based on-demand chef service backed by manufacturing conglomerate Shanghai Zhonglu, has raised RMB 100m ($16.1m) in a round led by venture capital firm Cowin Capital, Technode reported yesterday.
Cowin was joined in the series B round by Lightspeed China Partners, an affiliate of US-based VC firm Lightspeed Capital Partners.
Founded in June 2014, Haochushi enables users to book chefs, claiming it is currently responsible for more than 1,500 such bookings each day. The platform lists some 1,200 full-time chefs.
Users can either choose to purchase ingredients themselves or have the chef take care of the shopping for an additional fee. Chefs can earn between $1,300 and $1,900 per month through the service.
Haochushi will use the series B funding to expand into more urban markets. The service currently covers Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou and Shenzhen, as well as 10 smaller Chinese cities.
Lightspeed previously provided $5m in series A funding for the company in February 2015, while Shanghai Zhonglu invested $800,000 in an October 2014 seed round.