KBW Ventures, founded by Saudi Arabia’s Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al-Saud, has invested in French food technology startup Furahaa Group.
KBW Ventures said in a statement, the Paris-based start-up, established in 2015 by Arthur Devillers, also has an operating subsidiary called PlantB2B that distributes vegan food and a company called ViVeg that provides a subscription-based food box delivery service.
The company did not reveal the amount of its investment, which was made in a seed funding round with a group of other investors.
The startup intends to expand its PlantB2B subsidiary, which also stocks the group’s restaurants, to other French markets. It also plans to expand the ViVeg subscription service. The company also aims to open new Furahaa restaurants and introduce a franchise model for the chain.
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed Founder & CEO KBW Ventures
“This is my first investment in the French market. Furahaa Group, driven by Arthur’s vision for an inclusive and diverse workplace, while giving both consumers and other vendors a route to choose plant-based options, had me interested in the business immediately. The distribution business is strong, and during the (COVID-19) pandemic I saw a swift and organized pivot – something any investor would find very attractive in a portfolio company.”
Mr. Devillers said, “Furahaa would like to be the first plant-based chain in France. It’s simple: we want to be everywhere that mainstream fast food is, but offering plant-based, delicious, ethical alternatives.”
KBW Ventures has invested in several companies in the food technology sector. Its portfolio of investments includes plant-based alternative and cultivated cellular product firms. These include plant-based chicken product manufacturer Rebellyous Foods, US fast-food company Veggie Grill and vegan jerky company Moku Foods.
Last year, KBW Ventures has participated in a pre-seed funding round of TurtleTree Labs, a Singapore company that uses biotechnology to produce milk from cells.
