Gurgaon-based Food Delivery Startup Eatonomist Shuts Down; Co-founder Joins UberEATS

Gurgaon based Eatonomist, an online food delivery startup that used to deliver meals prepared in its own kitchens, has shutdown its operation lately.

As of now the Eatonomist website says -- "We will be back shortly"

Exactly a year ago, the startup had raised an undisclosed amount in seed funding from MCube Capital Advisors Pvt Ltd however the company failed to raise much needed follow-on funding, and that might be one of the reasons for the shutdown.

Founded in November 2014 by Anisha Dhar and Nupur Khanna, Eatonomist was operational in Gurgaon and Delhi and followed a full-stack business model wherein it controls the kitchens and delivery services.

One of the Eatonomist co-founder -- Anisha Dhar, has joined UberEATS, a food delivery service recently launched by cab-hailing service Uber, while Nupur Khanna, the other co-founder, left the company in November 2016, according to their LinkedIn profiles.

Notably, plenty of startups in India are failing to sustain its existence in last couple of years, particularly in food-delivery segment. Last year, several food-tech startups shutdown its operations including Bite Club, an another Gurgaon-based food delivery startup, along with others similar ones such as Frsh.com, iTiffin, Zuper Meal, MealHopper, and and Zeppery, which shut shop due to poor unit economics and unsustainable business models.

Just yesterday, IBM has released its report on failing Indian startups where it says that startups in India face failure because of poor corporate governance due to entrepreneurial inexperience and unethical business conduct.

Food Tech Startup Eatonomist Raises Seed Investment from MCube Capital Advisors Pvt Ltd

Eatonomist, an online platform that delivers meals prepared at its kitchens, which is run by Fitmeal Solutions Pvt. Ltd., has raised seed investment from MCube Capital Advisors Pvt Ltd.

The Gurgaon-based startup, will use the capital for marketing and building brand as well as will soon launch an app for its users. Founded in November 2014 by Anisha Dhar and Nupur Khanna, Eatonomist follows a full-stack business model wherein it controls the kitchens and delivery services and claims to deliver calorie-counted gourmet meals. Its menu includes sandwiches and desserts besides a range of Indian foods.

The startup is currently operating in Gurgaon and caters to corporates. With a team of 20 employees, including five chefs, it claims to be doing more than 300 orders a day. It plans to expand its network to Delhi by the end of this year.

According to a report by India Brand Equity Foundation, the online food ordering business in India is estimated to be Rs 5,000-6,000 crore. Other players operating in this space include Brekkie, Faaso’s, Box8, Cookaroo Food Network Pvt. Ltd, First Eat, FreshMenu and Swiggy.

In March, Cookaroo had raised angel funding from Highland Hospitalities’ MD Vijay Krishna Yadav. Earlier this year, First Eat secured $200,000 (around Rs 1.4 crore) in seed investment from an undisclosed investor. In January 2016, FreshMenu raised $17 million (around Rs 110 crore) in its Series B funding round led by Zodius Technology Fund. In the same month, Swiggy had raised $35 million in a Series C round of funding led by New York-based investor Harmony Partners and Singapore-based RB Investments.

Apart from this, Online food ordering app TinyOwl has reportedly shut down its operations in 17 cities except some areas of Mumbai. Mobile app Zeppery, which allowed users to pre-order food at restaurants and other food outlets, also decided to shut shop earlier this month and in February, online meal service startup Frsh.com, had closed its operations in Noida and Delhi, laying off 20 employees in the process.