- Tovala, a time-saving meal service and countertop smart oven that scans, steams, broils, and bakes chef-crafted meals, announced it raised $20 million in Series B funding
Tovala, a time-saving meal service and countertop smart oven that scans, steams, broils, and bakes chef-crafted meals, announced it raised $20 million in Series B funding led by Finistere Ventures with participation from new investors Comcast Ventures, OurCrowd and Rich Products Ventures.
And previous Tovala investors Origin Ventures, Pritzker Group Venture Capital, Crate & Barrel Founder Gordon Segal, New Stack Ventures, and the University of Chicago also participated in the round.
With this round of funding, Tovala will utilize the funding to fuel rapid growth, expand production capabilities, and grow their team. This funding will enable the brand to scale its fresh meal service and smart countertop oven to reach new customers nationwide.
Tovala had launched in 2017 and the company solves the dinner dilemma by providing scan-to-cook meals without the time commitment or preparation that is typically involved.
And the WiFi-connected countertop oven steams, bakes and broils based on a custom QR code and expertly cooks each individual meal. But unlike reheated dishes, Tovala offers the experience of a home-cooked meal without compromising on freshness or taste.
Tovala also highlighted some of its major milestones. These milestones include annualized revenue increased by 300% since September 2019. And subscribers grew by over 20% since the shelter-in-place began mid-March. And over 1 million meals have been shipped.
“Tovala delivers on the promise of a home-cooked meal without any of the work involved in getting a delicious, hot meal on the table. We fill a void for customers who crave convenience without sacrificing quality,” said Tovala CEO David Rabie. “We’re excited to partner with Finistere Ventures to propel our business forward and bring Tovala to more people.”
Finistere Ventures is known for supporting notable companies in the space like Farmer’s Fridge, Memphis Meats, and Plenty. And the company has strong relationships with top players in the food & beverage supply chain.
“Tovala uniquely sits at the intersection of trends in the smart home and meal kit spaces: Meals enabled by an automated device, delivering convenience without compromise. We recognize Tovala’s potential to own the kitchen countertop and look forward to being part of their expansion journey as we increase our investment in the food space,” added Arama Kukutai, co-founder and partner at Finistere Ventures. “Tovala demonstrated substantive growth and industry-leading retention even before the current shift in consumer food delivery models, and we think the company is poised to lead the reinvention of the food delivery market as it matures.”
Last year, Tovala launched a new Scan-to-Cook feature that allows its smart ovens to scan the barcode on over 750 brand-name grocery items to perfectly cook them without preheating, making its technology even more versatile. And in partnership with LG, Tovala embedded its Scan-to-Cook technology in LG smart ovens as part of LG’s Connected Home initiative. Plus Tovala also collaborated with Beyond Meat and celebrity Chef Graham Elliot for limited-time Tovala Meal offerings as well as expanded distribution by selling on QVC.
