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The Czech tech start-up that promises grocery deliveries in as little as two hours is now valued at €1bn.
Rohlik has become the latest European grocery delivery start-up to raise significant funds.
The Prague-based company nabbed €100m in a Series C funding round, valuing the business at €1bn and giving it unicorn status.
The round was led by Index Ventures with existing shareholders participating. The funds will allow the company to deploy tech innovations and accelerate international expansion, including a launch in Munich in the coming months.
The company also plans to spread to other German cities as well as Romania, Italy, France and Spain.
Founded in 2014, Rohlik promises to deliver groceries to users in as little as two hours after placing an order. It boasts an online store of more than 17,000 items, including its own brands of dairy and meat products.
Its latest round of funding follows a €190m raise in March. Tomáš Čupr, the company’s CEO and founder, said the fresh investment shows investor confidence in the company’s growth.
“We are now perceived as a European company able to scale quickly in the very demanding western European markets. The newly secured funding helps us to accelerate even faster than originally intended, mainly in the areas of new market entries, fulfilment centre automation and the overall pace of innovation, including hiring great talent,” he said.
Jan Hammer, partner at Index Ventures, said: “Rohlik, which is already profitable in its largest market, is experiencing strong growth in new regions and is outperforming across all metrics. Its unique model, which marries convenience with a full assortment of products, from essential value items to high-quality local produce, is proving to be a winning formula.”
Rohlik is just one start-up in Europe capitalising on the growing popularity of on-demand grocery delivery services.
Earlier this year, Berlin-based start-up Gorillas joined the unicorn club when it received $290m in Series B funding.
Shortly after that, Spanish on-demand delivery company Glovo raised €450m in a Series F round to double down on its operations in existing markets and expand in the areas of retail and grocery delivery.
