Indonesia’s HappyFresh wins funding, revamps board

Bloomberg

HappyFresh has secured funding from investors to resume online grocery operations in Indonesia, staving off a potential cash crunch fomented by the regional economic slowdown.
The Instacart-style grocery delivery service said it’s restarting operations in its home market, after a strategic review. It will work with venture debt funds Genesis, Innoven and Mars on restructuring the business, HappyFresh said in a statement.
As part of a reshuffle, representatives of US firm Kroll will replace three former directors on its board, including Naver Corp’s Lee Jung An. Jason Kardachi, who leads Kroll’s restructuring practice in Southeast Asia, will work with HappyFresh on its overhaul.
The startup, which didn’t disclose the amount of new funding, said it will now focus on Indonesia while considering options for its businesses in Thailand and Malaysia.
Jakarta-based HappyFresh, which struggled this year to raise capital after a sharp downturn in the young online grocery sector, had hired turnaround firm Alvarez & Marsal Holdings LLC during a review of its financial situation, Bloomberg News reported this month. Chief Executive Officer Guillem Segarra, Chief Financial Officer Frederic Verin and Chief Operating Officer Christoph Krauss have been reinstated after stepping back from their day-to-day duties.
“We have gone through a lot,” Filippo Candrini, managing director of HappyFresh Indonesia, said.
“Over the past weeks when we paused operations, we saw numerous comments from customers across various social media platforms stating their reliance on our service offering while requesting for the service to be resumed as soon as possible.”
Founded in 2014 as one of the first Instacart-style grocery delivery services in Southeast Asia, HappyFresh has raised at least $97 million in equity funding in addition to debt financing. Formally known as ICart Group Pte, it operates in Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.