Kraft Heinz Venture Arm Lends A Helping Hand To Fabric’s Series B Round

U.S.-Israeli startup Fabric has a new investor in Evolv Ventures for its Series B round.

Evolv Ventures is most known as the venture arm of Kraft Heinz.

Kraft Heinz, one of the world’s prominent global food and beverage companies, operates Evolv through a team effort, involving food, startup and venture capital professionals. Evolv contributed an undisclosed amount to Fabric’s $110 million round.

Of the investment, Fabric co-founder and chief executive Elram Goren said it would “help propel [them] forward.” He said Fabric’s goal was to “change the game” in how businesses operate.

Fabric is a company focused on using robotics technology in order to help retailers offer quick delivery and pickup services, along with other things like store replenishment. The endgame, according to a press release, is to provide companies with “flexibility” to solve any number of problems.

Fabric launched an automatic fulfillment center in October of 2018. Today, that facility processes up to 600 orders a day using a space of 6,000 square feet, boasting delivery times of just an hour, the press release claims.

In 2019, Fabric’s a new grocery site, serving same-day deliveries, also went live. This year, the company is looking at expanding in the U.S. in partnership with other brands.

The name of the game these days for grocery and food businesses is speed, with everyone vying to try and get people their orders as fast as possible. The need was born out of the current wants of younger customers, who look for convenience and ways to avoid having to take unnecessary trips.

Online sales still aren’t a huge force in grocery retail in the U.S. yet, comprising only about 3.5 percent of the total sales. But they’re increasing all the time, with the category listed as the fastest-growing online vertical on eMarketer.

To meet the need, stores and retailers are working on miniature fulfillment centers that can fit on their property to maximize the speed of deliveries.