Kenya-based cloud kitchen Kune Food has closed shop months after raising USD 1 million (Ksh117 million) in seed funding, affecting 90 employees who were employed by the company.
The startup was founded in December 2020 to offer ready-to-eat affordable meals and conducted a trial in Kenya in the early months of 2021 before officially beginning operations later that year.
In a LinkedIn post, Robin Reecht, the startup’s founder and CEO, announced the closure after failing to raise funds to keep up operations, while blaming the “economic downturn and investment markets tightening up.”
“My first thoughts go to my team. You put your heart and soul into building the Kune that so many people loved. I’m deeply sorry it didn’t work out. To all my fellow entrepreneurs, please check the Kune “employee page” on LinkedIn and see if your recruitment needs could be filled by some of our team members. I know those are difficult times for you too. But they are terrific people who will bring tremendous value to your company. You can call me if you need any reference on a Kune employee.”
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Earlier this year, the startup said it was raising $3.5 million from local and international investors to ramp up their production capacity.
Initially, the startup handled everything including delivery but over the last few months, it began using third-party apps like Uber Eats, Glovo and Bolt Food to fulfil their orders.
Until the indefinite closure, Kune was hoping to increase production capacity and to expand its operations beyond Kenya’s capital, Nairobi. It had targeted a countrywide footprint by 2024.
Kune’s investors included the pan-African venture capital firm Launch Africa Ventures, who led its pre-seed round last year, Century Oak Capital GmbH and Consonance.
“My second thought goes to our investors. Some of you joined the Kune journey when it was just me and a Chef, delivering food on foot to a nearby office. Some others joined later and helped us grow into a foodtech startup with a tech platform, a factory, a kitchen studio, 7 distribution hubs, 6000 customers, and a team of 90 people. Not only did you invest in Kune but you gave us your time, brain-width, connections, and emotional support. I am deeply sorry that Kune’s vision didn’t come true. To betray your confidence is something for which I will never forgive myself. My third thought goes to suppliers, customers, bankers, and partners of any sort who supported us along our way. I’m sincerely sorry for the outcome. Many things could have been done differently, better certainly. The coming months will allow us to reflect on Kune’s failure, and I hope to share about it when the time will be right. If you know anyone who could be interested to acquire Kune’s IP or Assets, please reach out,” added Reecht.
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