Matsmart-Motatos, a key player in the European direct-to-consumer e-commerce space, has successfully completed a 40 million Euro growth capital round. Led by Circularity Capital with additional support from existing shareholders, the newly acquired capital is earmarked for significant expansion in both the German and Nordic regions.
As an e-commerce retailer of overstock dry foods and consumer products, Matsmart-Motatos procures and resells overstock goods that are unable to be purchased by traditional retailers. They do so at lower prices, allowing consumers more affordable options to purchase food products while eliminating food waste. Indeed, Matsmart-Motatos has recirculated more than 60,000 tons of food and consumer products since its establishment, contributing significantly to the challenge of eliminating food waste and offering more sustainable purchasing options.
“Consumers are becoming increasingly conscious of the environmental impact of their daily lives and many of us also see the need to spend very cautiously,” CEO Peter Beckius said. “We offer our customers sustainable shopping that is fun, affordable and accessible to all and naturally this resonates well with a lot of people.”
With this, Matsmart-Motatos is aiming to expand its operations across the Nordic regions as well as Germany. Learning from the success of their automated Nordic warehouse, which has enhanced operational capacity and efficiency, Matsmart-Motatos aims to implement similar advanced systems in Germany.
“Our coming five year plan includes significant growth in the Nordic and DACH regions and our most important investment ahead will be the automation of the German warehouse operations,” said Beckius.
“Matsmart-Motatos has already built a market-leading position in a fast-growing industry addressing a major inefficiency in the global food supply chain,” added Andrew Shannon, partner at Circularity Capital and board member of Matsmart-Motatos.
“The company has a robust platform that is ready for further scale and a dedicated team that has proven its ability to execute. We look forward to working closely with the team in executing this exciting phase of its strategic growth plan centered around continued growth in Germany and other European markets.”
Generating positive environmental impact: Matsmart-Motatos
The investment aligns with the global trend of impact investing, as reported in the Impact Investing Global Market Report 2023, which showed a 17.8% growth between 2022 and 2023. Companies like Matsmart-Motatos, which generate positive social and environmental impact along with financial returns, are becoming increasingly attractive to investors.
Karl Andersson, Founder of Matsmart-Motatos, stressed the importance of partnerships in their mission to revolutionize the food system.
“Ten years ago, we set out to prove that it is possible to successfully scale a business that addresses a central sustainability challenge in the food industry — one that is responsible for 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions,” he said. “A decade later, we have a foothold in five markets and we are the first European grocery e-commerce business to reach profitability in our home market.”
More than that, such a strategy offers a practical solution for Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) suppliers. This approach has positioned Matsmart-Motatos as the top food overstock retailer in the Nordics and a rapidly growing entity in Germany.
“As we are now accelerating our pace further, we’re excited to be working with Circularity Capital given their track record in helping circular businesses to grow and thrive,” said Andersson. “Our purposes are closely aligned and we see that the Circularity team can offer valuable guidance on our growth journey ahead.”
The funding round saw participation from many of Matsmart-Motatos’ current investors, along with new investor SevenVentures, the investment arm of ProSiebenSat.1.
