Yet another “quick commerce” 15-minute groceries startup is hoping to make a name for itself in this space, adding to the myriad companies currently crowding out this market. But Grovy is avoiding the crowded cities of Western Europe, setting its sights on becoming a daily delivery leader in the East.
It’s now finalized a €3 million financing round led by Lighthouse Ventures to expand across Central and Eastern Europe, with offices already running in Prague and Bucharest, after entering the German market in Frankfurt and Mainz.
While many players rely on significant markups, which can be as high as 20%, as well as low-paid gig workers, Grovy says it only employs full-time workers and leverages a 5% markup on deliveries, with a flat delivery fee that is waived for orders above €40.
Its other schtick is sustainability, with deliveries only on bikes and EVs, discounts on “ugly” produce and soon-to-expire perishables (helping to cut down on food waste) and working with food waste startups such as Too Good To Go, while employing a carbon offset program.
Justin Adam, co-founder and CEO of Grovy said: “Frankfurt and Mainz, with their high demand for quick commerce solutions, served as the perfect sandbox. But rather than replicate our model in other German cities, we are bringing it to larger cities across the CEE region, where 10-minute delivery is still a novelty and the potential to scale is massive.”
Michal Zalesak, managing partner at lead investor Lighthouse Ventures, said: “Grovy has made achievements in mere weeks that would take a normal grocery chain a year to accomplish. Despite enormous competitive pressures, their unique approach to quick commerce has landed them phenomenal success in Germany, and we want to support them as they take on Central and Eastern Europe’s cities.”
Grovy faces competition from Gorillas and Flink in Germany, and Lisek in Warsaw, but tends to face only one-hour delivery competition from the likes of Bolt or Delivery Hero in most other European cities in which it’s operating.