Delivery Startup Jokr Raises $170M In Series A

grocery delivery

Global instant grocery and retail delivery startup Jokr raised $170 million in a Series A funding round led by GGV Capital, Balderton Capital and Tiger Global Management, with additional participation from Greycroft, Kaszek, Monashees, Activant Capital, HV Capital and FJ Labs.

Jokr CEO and founder Ralf Wenzel — a former executive with Germany’s Delivery Hero and FoodPanda founder — said in a Tuesday (July 20) press release emailed to PYMNTS that the fresh capital will help the delivery startup expand operations and target “local product offerings and more sustainable delivery and supply chains.”

The startup is already on the move and expanded its global operations to 100 delivery hubs across nine cities in the U.S., Latin America and Europe.

The funding is among the biggest Series A rounds and is backed by high-level technology investors and comes just three months after Jokr started operations this year. The company launched operation headquarters in New York last month and has 10 hubs in that region.

GGV Capital Managing Partner Hans Tung, who is joining Jokr’s board, said Jokr has an “all-star team” that will revamp the supply chain for retail operations.

“The combination of food delivery experience and the sophisticated data capabilities that optimizes inventory allocation and dispatch set JOKR apart,” Tung said. 

Jokr’s order volume doubles about every two weeks. The firm offers instant delivery locally by collaborating with local businesses and restaurants. The startup uses artificial intelligence (AI) to enable each of its hubs to customize inventory based on consumer demand in a particular neighborhood. 

The no-fee delivery service also extends benefits to its full-time packers and riders, the company said in the release.

Wenzel said in April that the platform was aiming to be “Amazon on steroids” and will offer products as a retailer without the expenses of a “middleman.” The startup distributes products via a network of small local warehouses.