Secai Marche, No.1 Farm-Direct online platform in Southeast Asia has raised JPY 250 million (US$1.6 million) in its Series A funding round.
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The round includes equity financing from Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Venture Capital (MSIVC) and debt financing from The Shizuoka Bank and The Hokkoku Bank.
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This comes after Beyond Next Ventures, Spiral Ventures Asia, Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, Future Food Fund, Tsuneishi Shoji, Fukuoka Sonoriku, and Foodison co-CEO Toru Yamamoto invested US$3.5 million in a Series A round in August of this year.
The company enables vegetable producers to access demand forecasting data and sell their products in small quantities. Consumers can, on the other hand, buy high-quality, reasonably priced products from a variety of producers in one location.
Secai Marche provides over 4,000 carefully selected ingredients from producers worldwide, including Japan and Malaysia. It specializes in fresh foods like eggs, vegetables, fruits, and seafood. The startup claims to have achieved 200 per cent year-on-year growth since its inception, which it attributes to its direct distribution channel.
Yuko Shinohara, Manager of MSIVC, said: “With its optimised supply chain and fulfilment functions, Secai Marhce has realised freshness, low prices and convenience of buying fresh foods at the same time and rapidly increased its customers in Kuala Lumpur. We are confident that the business will grow further as a platform for exporting food products from Japan, as well as expected to have a social impact in reducing food loss and improving the income of local farmers in Southeast Asia.”
Secai Marche intends to use the newly raised funds to capitalize on Southeast Asia’s rapidly growing e-commerce and food and beverage (F&B) industries. It intends to expand its fulfillment centres, uses AI to improve demand forecast accuracy, automate and optimize last-mile deliveries, and conduct system development and marketing activities.
About Secai Marche
Established in 2019 by Ami Sugiyama and Shusaku Hayakawa, Secai Marche provides a platform for food and beverage companies and retailers to buy high-quality products directly from farmers and fishermen at competitive prices.
