China-based food court operator Shiyunji has raised an eight-figure dollar amount in a series A round co-led by Bertelsmann Asia Investments, a corporate venturing subsidiary of media group Bertelsmann, China Money Network reported yesterday.
The round was co-led by venture capital firm Qiming Venture Partners and included Canbailian, a vehicle for national catering guild China Cuisine Association, as well as Zhen Fund, Lishi Venture Capital and Tongkong Investment Group.
Shiyunji runs food courts in the Chinese cities of in Nanjing and Shanghai, each of which has between 25 and 30 food brands selling goods. It utilises mobile and cloud software in order to make sales and purchasing more efficient and cut labour and material costs.
The model means ordering and paying for food is streamlined through an app, meaning each food outlet only needs two people to operate, the company claims.
Zhao Penglan, senior investment manager at Bertelsmann Asia Investments, said: “Shiyunji is changing the food industry at three levels.
“At the infrastructure level, it enhances production and supply chain efficiency. At the performance level, it improves revenue by introducing new retail into the industry. At the cloud level, it has developed a system providing information on both customers and transactions.”