Online grocery platform Misfits Market has completed a $225 million Series C-1 fundraising round that slingshots the Philadelphia-born unicorn’s valuation to $2 billion as it moves to increase its offerings and national presence.
The capital raise was led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2, and Accel also participated. Lydia Jett, an investor and partner at SoftBank, will join Misfits Market's board as part of the Series C-1 round.
“We believe Misfits Market has a deep understanding of the inefficiencies in the food supply chain and are building their own from the ground up to radically change the way food makes its way to the consumer,” Jett said in a statement.
With this latest injection of cash, Delanco, New Jersey-based Misfits Market has raised more than $526 million since its 2018 launch. In April, the startup achieved unicorn status after raising $200 million in Series C funding.
The company started out as an “ugly produce” subscription grocery box service in North Philadelphia offering 15 staple produce items like potatoes and apples. It has since diversified its offerings to include other grocery categories like perishable goods and proteins.
Misfits Market has doubled its product offerings in the last four months, and recently opened a new 115,000-square-foot warehouse in Dallas to cater to increased demand as it expanded into Arizona, New Mexico, Nebraska and Oklahoma.
The Texas facility has led to more than 100,000 pounds of chicken, 48,000 pounds of steak, and 34,000 pounds of salmon being delivered to customers within 10 weeks, according to the company.
Misfits Market has a goal to eliminate food deserts in the United States by 2025 by increasing accessibility to affordable, healthy foods. It has a presence in 43 states, including Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Delaware, Connecticut and Massachusetts, and looks to be operational in all 48 contiguous states by the end of the year.
The company has experienced “tremendous growth” throughout 2021, said CEO and Founder Abhi Ramesh. In the Philadelphia market, for example, order volume in the first quarter of 2021 was more than double what it was during the same period last year, the company recently told the Business Journal.
Misfits Market has partially attributed the growth to increased online shopping during the Covid-19 pandemic, which it says offers a mix of convenience, accessibility and affordability.
“We've been laser focused on building our food value supply chain and this capital infusion enables us to deploy it nationwide and continue realizing our vision for a better grocery experience,” Ramesh said. “Shoppers have responded, and proven there is a market and an appetite for online grocery platforms that makes quality food accessible and affordable.”
