Mexico-based supply chain startup Alima has raised $1.5 million in new funding to develop data-driven tools for businesses to find the products they need and deliver them directly to them.
The procurement process in Latin America today is complex and expensive, co-founder and CEO Jorge Vizcaino told TechCrunch. Restaurants, hotels and catering companies must navigate crowded markets, negotiate with multiple vendors, ensure product quality and coordinate transportation — often driving hours to pick them up themselves, he explained.
On the other hand, farmers and distributors face uncertainty about the quality of their produce once they leave their facility, finding sufficient demand and getting a fair price.
The fresh produce market in Mexico is expected to grow by $4 billion over the next four years, so Vizcaino and co-founder Blanca Espinosa Alima will help address these issues by anticipating growth starting in June 2021.
Vizcaino’s background is in mechatronics engineering, machine learning and data science, and he co-founded Tubo, a smart wearable device for cyclists, and was the former chief technology officer at a Mexican price comparison platform before founding Alima. Espinosa, Alima’s chief marketing officer, previously held development and marketing roles with Coca-Cola FEMSA, Amazon and Uber.
Alima’s platform digitizes and streamlines procurement, transportation and tracking using artificial intelligence and analytics for less food spoilage. Now, instead of going to the market in the morning, businesses can order goods by 10 pm and have them delivered to their stores by 7 am.
The company currently offers 800 product SKUs, but Alima says it’s willing to do homework for customers so they don’t have to go to more than one place to find items.
Alima product supply chain
“If we don’t have our philosophy, we will find it,” she said. “If a fine dining restaurant needs something special, we need a good supplier. In some cases it takes less than three days to find what you want, and then we have it. That flexibility is something we’ve never seen before in our catalog and SKUs.
Features also include tax receipts, payments, check-out and expense tracking. For farmers and distributors, this method reduces the number of “links” in the supply chain and provides better price transparency.
Vizcaino called Frubana, a company that connects restaurants with suppliers in Colombia, Alima’s closest competitor. However, rather than being a “one-stop shop” as Frubana describes itself, Alima is more focused in the supply chain.
“We are aiming for full vertical integration,” he said. “This can only be achieved by focusing on one category and measuring the value proposition across multiple distribution channels.”
Now armed with $1.5 million in new funding, the company can expand its operations. The fund is led by Soma Capital, Y Combinator (the company in the Winter 22 batch), The Dorm Room Fund, Seed9, Pareto and a group of angel investors.
Alima has grown its revenue 10x since January and continues to grow at double digits every month. It currently works with 600 clients, and Vizcaino expects to triple that number by the beginning of the year.
The company started with restaurants and hotels last year and is now expanding to schools, hospitals and CPG factories. Plans include retailers and exporters, as well as food items that businesses such as meat market chains need, Vizcaino added.
