Blue Apron, which among a cadre of meal delivery startups has carved a niche by bringing meal kits to homes, has finalized a $135 million investment from a group of companies led by Fidelity.
The company, which delivers boxes weekly to consumers stocked with the ingredients and recipes needed to home-cook meals, announced the investment Tuesday (June 9). The deal follows Re/code reports from last month that said Fidelity was geared to lead the investing group — which also includes original holders — at a valuation of roughly $2 billion.
Among the existing investors: First Round Capital and Bessemer Venture Partners.
Capital raised will help grow the company’s already existing networks spanning farms, suppliers and fulfillment operations, the company said.
The service is subscription based, which in turn cheers investors due to a recurring revenue model, Re/code noted Tuesday.
The latest investment comes amid growing investor appetite for delivery startups. Blue Apron was able to raise $50 million last year in a funding round that valued the outfit at about $500 million. And in the meantime, Re/code said, Blue Apron’s revenue run rate is closing in on the $100 million mark on an annual basis, against a monthly delivery count of 3 million meals.
Blue Apron is only the latest upstart to get investors salivating over outsized returns, though the Fidelity-led round represents a relatively high figure in the “triple digit” million dollar range. Munchery, a meal delivery company that specializes in bringing microwavable meals to consumers across several major U.S. cities, looked to complete a financing round of as much as $85 million last month. As reported by The Wall Street Journal at the time, the valuation at that rate would be $300 million. Other financing headlines within the fast delivery (but not necessarily fast food) pantheon include Sprig, which found its coffers flush with $45 million two months ago.
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