Curefoods Enhances Portfolio with Yumlane Pizza Acquisition

• ByStartupStory     |    October 30, 2023

Curefoods, backed by Accel and Chiratae Ventures, has completed the acquisition of Yumlane Pizza, a cloud kitchen brand renowned for its proprietary pizza technology. The transaction, conducted for an undisclosed amount, paves the way for Curefoods to leverage Yumlane’s pizza technology across its portfolio of brands. This strategic move is expected to facilitate Curefoods, the owner of brands such as EatFit, Nomad Pizza, and CakeZone, in expanding its market presence and distribution network by tapping into Yumlane’s extensive network of cloud kitchens.

Curefoods, headquartered in Bengaluru, initially secured the cloud kitchen franchise rights for the south Indian market and subsequently acquired a 10% stake in the foodtech firm. Yumlane Pizza, founded in March 2016 by Hitesh Ahuja, Rueben Ghosh, and Rahul Kumar, developed a cutting-edge technology stack specifically for pizza production. Later, the company ventured into the cloud kitchen business under the banner of Yumlane Pizza and diversified into the business-to-business (B2B) segment. Yumlane’s B2B vertical distribution network has expanded to cover over 15 cities and has served various prominent brands, including Barbeque Nation, Frozen Bottle, and Reliance Retail’s joint venture, 7-11.

Notably, Yumlane Pizza has received investments from notable backers such as Binny Bansal, co-founder of Flipkart, Anupam Mittal of Shaadi.com, Orios Ventures, and RB Investments. On the other hand, Curefoods recently raised Rs 200 crore (approximately $36 million) in a round that blended debt and equity, with significant participation from Binny Bansal’s venture capital firm, Three State Ventures. Additional investors in this round included IronPillar, Chiratae Ventures, ASK Finance, and Winter Capital.

Hitesh Ahuja, Co-founder and CEO of Yumlane Pizza, expressed satisfaction with the partnership with Curefoods and their recognition of the value in the pizza category that Yumlane has built. He believes that Curefoods, with its operational and marketing expertise and the ability to scale food brands, is well-positioned to enhance and grow Yumlane into a pizza industry powerhouse.

Gokul Kandhi, Chief Business Officer of Curefoods, praised Yumlane’s innovative approach to crafting pizza using proprietary technology, emphasizing its consistent delivery of high-quality products. He sees the alignment of Yumlane’s extensive B2B client network and their reputation as a value leader in the pizza category as strategically beneficial to Curefoods’ brand portfolio, expressing excitement about leveraging Yumlane’s potential to elevate the pizza category.

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