Tablevibe, a Singaporean software startup focused on capturing customer data and driving direct sales for restaurants, raised a $1.5M seed investment round led by venture capital firm Global Founder Capital.
The startup was part of Y Combinator’s most recent batch which had about 20 companies from Southeast Asia – its highest contingent ever. Travel and Hospitality VC Velocity Ventures and multiple Angel investors, among which Farouk Kadous, founder of African fast-food chain Chickin Worx, also participated in the seed round.
“The global pandemic drove a seismic shift towards digital commerce in the food and beverage (F&B) industry. While 70 percent of consumers say they would rather order directly from a restaurant, many restaurants lack the tools to drive direct-to-consumer relationships,” Tablevibe Chief Exeucutive Officer Jeroen Rutten said in a statement.
“Direct-to-consumer is the future of the F&B industry and unlocking this strategy for restaurants is a multi-trillion dollar business opportunity. This investment will help us create a direct ordering and loyalty solution to drive sustained growth for restaurants. It will significantly decrease cost-of-sales for our partners and empower them to own their customer relationships,” he added.
Tablevibe’s founding team includes two ex-Google business leaders; Jeroen Rutten and Mathieu Sneep. They are joined by Guido Caldara, a former lead teacher at coding bootcamp Le Wagon.
According to the statement, restaurants and Cloud Kitchens increasingly rely on delivery apps. These apps demand a 20 percent to 40 percent revenue share and typically don’t share customer data. As a result, restaurants don’t know who their customers are and their margins are under pressure.
With Tablevibe, F&B businesses simply print QR codes on food packages and bill folders to request customer feedback and emails. Positive customers post their 5-star rating directly on Google. In return, customers get a discount on their next order, if placed directly with the restaurant.
This enables eateries to capture valuable customer data, boost their online reputation and grow repeat sales, while saving 20 percent to 40 percent in delivery app fees.
Since it’s official launch early 2021, the startup partnered with hundreds of restaurants from industry leaders like CloudEats, Les Amis Group, The Lo & Behold Group, Vascobelo and Burger & Lobster.