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Image credits: Huuva

Helsinki-based Huuva, a startup that builds delivery-focused restaurant cohorts to bring new quality restaurant options to unserved neighbourhoods, announced on Wednesday that it has secured €4.9M in a Seed round of funding.

The round was led by General Catalyst. The round also saw participation from Lifeline Ventures along with several angel investors, including Laurel Bowden and Ilkka Paananen. 

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The announcement comes eight months after securing €1M in a pre-Seed round led by Lifeline Ventures.

Huuva says it will use the funds to ramp up its expansion in Central Europe and recruit more than 100 business and operations talent. 

Huuva: What you need to know

Founded by Ville Leppälä and Ville Lehto in 2021, Huuva provides a turn-key service for restaurants that seek to expand and grow their business. 

The Finnish company builds delivery-focused restaurant cohorts that gather three to ten restaurant brands under one roof around cities and suburbs, offering consumers the option to order multiple brands in one go. 

Ville Leppälä, the co-founder and CEO of Huuva, says, “Restaurant offerings outside city centres are close to non-existent. We’re on a mission to revolutionise the restaurant offering in underserved neighbourhoods. We believe that the trendiest, most popular restaurants shouldn’t be the privilege of city centres or certain hot spots – and that the neighbourhoods in the city outskirts should have other high-quality options than the average multinational restaurant chains.”

The company aims to help restaurants make food delivery a sustainable business and bring better delivery food options to the consumer. Since September, 2021, Huuva has opened six kitchens around the greater Helsinki area. 

Huuva says that its kitchen spaces are located close to areas of significant delivery demand, which is also easily accessible for couriers. 

Ville Leppälä adds, “Before setting up a new Huuva kitchen, we analyse the local trends and current restaurant selection to bring the most fitting restaurants for the people. It’s also important to consider delivery operations and put the neighbourhood’s comfort first. 

Huuva’s commission-based virtual food court offers end-to-end services with proprietary technology, from ordering dishes to cooking them.

“Our kitchens are designed for delivery, from software that enters delivery orders for cooks to the way the kitchens are located around the cities,” says the company. 

Huuva has already partnered with several top restaurant brands in Finland, such as Via Tribunali, Green Hippo, and Pupu. 

Investors

Based out of Cambridge, General Catalyst is a venture capital firm that provides early-stage and growth equity investments. The VC is known for their investments in Rapyd, Deliveroo, Airbnb, and Stripe. 

Adam Valkin, Managing Director at General Catalyst, says, “Since their launch in September 2021, Huuva has made impressive progress. Their unique approach in Europe has significantly improved the food selection for the end customer in a number of neighbourhoods while making food delivery more profitable for restaurants. At the same time, couriers get to pick up from delivery optimised locations minimising delivery times.”

Based out of Helsinki, Lifeline Ventures is a venture capital firm specialising in startups, growth capital, and early-stage investments. The firm seeks to invest in healthcare, games, web-based, and general high technology sectors.

Timo Ahopelto, Founding Partner at Lifeline Ventures, says, “Huuva is a prime showcase of an ambitious, fast-moving startup with a distinctive offering in an exciting new market. Huuva is able to cater to all stakeholders, from restaurant entrepreneurs to food-loving end-customers and delivery operators – a unique position to be in. We are excited to continue to be a part of Huuva’s growth journey.”