The “Uber for weed” startup Eaze has grown quite a bit over the last year and it intends to expand even more. To get it there, Eaze has closed on $13 million in Series B funding from Fresh VC, DCM Ventures and Tusk Ventures.
Eaze launched in July of 2014 to help medical marijuana patients order cannabis on demand. It soon expanded to allow people to get a medical weed card in the state of California over the phone in under 10 minutes.
The startup now claims availability in nearly 100 cities in California — note at least 20 of these cities are considered a part of the Bay Area — and says it has delivered marijuana to more than 200,000 people.
Eaze plans to use the money to hire more workers and to expand to more markets in the future. The startup says it would eventually like to create a feature that will assist individuals in recommending strains to fit their needs or preferences as well.
But the bigger picture here is that Eaze needs the money to establish itself as a recognized delivery brand both in and out of California, especially as several states have now legalized the use of marijuana and nine more states have legislation on the November ballot relating to some form of legalization.
California is the largest marijuana market. It’s legal to smoke weed in the state if you have a medical card giving you the go-ahead but there are measures California to make it legal for anyone — and that could increase profits for the on-demand ganja delivery space. Also, as more states legalize weed, Eaze could expand its business to these other places and increase customers there as well.
“This is a critical time for the marijuana industry,” CEO Keith McCarty said in a statement. “Platforms like Eaze that are setting a new standard for accessibility, safety, and professionalism are best positioned to educate and service the future market.”
Eaze says it has created a data-driven platform to make the process smooth for the dispensaries and customers involved and plans to continue making the process better. It says because of the growth opportunities in the industry and the rapid pace at which legalization seems to be happening, traditional VCs have started to come around for a piece of the action.
“In an incredibly short period of time, Eaze has led the charge into an industry projected to grow from $7 billion this year to $50 billion by 2026,” DCM’s David Chao, who’s been an Eaze investor since the seed stage said.
Eaze was one of the first on-demand delivery companies in the industry and has now raised a total of $25 million.