CloudEats, a pioneering cloud kitchen company with a presence in Vietnam and the Philippines, has raised a $7 million Series A extension led by Nordstar Capital to reach more Southeast Asian markets.
A cloud kitchen, or a virtual restaurant, is a business providing restaurant owners and food enterprises with commercial kitchen space at a lower cost for food delivery and takeout. By not having a full-service restaurant premises with a storefront and dining room, virtual restaurants can economize by occupying cheaper real estate. This trend is accelerating in the restaurant industry.
After its successful launch in Vietnam earlier this year, CloudEats, the Manila-headquartered startup plans to further expand to other Southeast Asian markets like Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand by next year, according to its CEO Kimberly Yao.
She told todaybusinessupdates.com that the latest funding will also enable her company to develop its brands, grow its team and double-invest in shared kitchen technology.
“The tremendous growth of our business in Vietnam over the past two quarters is very encouraging. We’ll be taking the best practices along with the key lessons to our next market launch,” Yao was quoted as saying.
According to Yao, the company’s sales volume has quadrupled since April this year compared to October last year.
CloudEats already has more than 30 brands in the Philippines and more than 20 in Vietnam, including Burger Beast, 24/7 Eat, Sulit Chicken, Pia’s Kitchen, and Healthy Appetite.
“Today, we own and operate more than 50 online-optimized restaurant brands that we create and operate exclusively in the Philippines and Vietnam,” the site quoted Yao. “Our patented smart kitchen technology integrated with food delivery platforms allows us to quickly scale and grow the business.”
Together with the previous $5 million round, the latest proceeds bring CloudEats’ total funding to $14 million.
According to Ho Chi Minh City’s tax office, the CloudEats Vietnam Ltd. Co. office opened in November 2021, located in District 1, the core of the city’s central business district (CBD). A corporate self-introduction says Vietnam’s market serves as a foundation for CloudEats to reach other regional markets. This introduction adds CloudEats Vietnam is recruiting employees for several posts like cooks, assistant cooks, warehouse workers, and cashiers.