Acquisition of 16.6% Stake in Food Robotics Startup approved by Zomato
- ByStartupStory | March 16, 2022
On March 15, amid talks of a merger with Blinkit, Zomato’s board approved the acquisition of 16.66% stake in robotics startups, Mukunda Foods, for about $5 Mn. In a regulatory filing to the National Stock Exchange, the foodtech giant made the announcement.
Zomato said that their investment will help Mukunda Foods scale faster, help reduce restaurant food prices, expand margins, and enhance customer delight. The listed company will be enabled by the move in order to help restaurants become more efficient by reducing manpower cost and wastage and also to increase kitchen throughput. The acquisition is expected to be completed by Zomato in seven days.
Mukunda is a food robotics company, founded in 2012 by Eshwar K Vikas and Sudeep Sabat, It designs and manufactures smart robotic equipment so as to automate food preparation for restaurants. Restaurants to scale its products rapidly while maintaining consistency in food quality and customer experience across multiple outlets have been claimed to be enabled by the company.
An undisclosed amount of funding from Ncubate Capital Partners has previously been raised back in 2018 by the startup. In 2013, previously it had also raised INR 1 Cr in funding from IAN. In total,so far INR 40 Cr has been raised by the startup in funding.
DosaMatic, Eco Fryer, RiCo and Wokie are the offerings of the startup that allow users to make noodles,dosas, rice, and curries without any human intervention. In the financial year 2020-21, Mukunda registered a turnover of INR 3.25 Cr, despite COVID wreaking havoc across the Indian economy.
A report states that the global food robotics market size in 2020 was estimated to be around $1.9 Bn and by 2026 it is projected to reach the $4 Bn mark at a CAGR of 13.1%.
Another report states that the installation of as many as 5,000 units in 2019 has been witnessed by the Indian industrial robotics market and by 2025 it is estimated to reach 11,760 units, expanding at a CAGR of 14.41%.
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