Lagos-based food delivery startup Chowdeck has secured $9 million in a Series A funding round to expand its quick commerce strategy and scale operations across Nigeria and Ghana. The company, which has grown to serve 1.5 million customers in just four years since its founding in October 2021, is leveraging dark stores to achieve ultra-fast delivery times for groceries, meals, and essentials, aiming to redefine last-mile logistics in West Africa.
“Chowdeck started because we wanted to deliver meals very quickly. We ventured into delivering groceries and delivering medicines, and we saw that it was increasingly difficult to achieve under 30-minute delivery with supermarkets and pharmacies,” CEO Femi Aluko shared in a chat with Techpoint Africa. The startup has already launched several dark stores in Lagos, cutting grocery delivery times to 20 minutes or less, and plans to open 40 more across Nigeria by the end of 2025, with ambitions to reach 500 by 2026, adding two to three stores weekly.
Funding and investor confidence
The all-equity Series A round was led by Novastar Ventures, with participation from Y Combinator, AAIC Investment, Rebel Fund, GFR Fund, Kaleo, HoaQ, and notable angel investors like Paystack co-founders Shola Akinlade and Ezra Olubi. Brian Odhiambo, Partner at Novastar Ventures, emphasised the company’s potential, stating, “Chowdeck is building the future of logistics for African cities by creating a platform that benefits consumers, vendors and riders alike. With deep local insight, a sustainability-first approach and impressive execution, Chowdeck is redefining last-mile delivery on the continent.”
Standing out in a tough market
Chowdeck’s rapid growth is notable in a challenging market where competitors like Jumia Food, Bolt Food, and Yango have scaled back or exited Nigeria and Ghana. The startup’s disciplined approach, focusing on profitability from inception, sets it apart.
Aluko noted that Chowdeck only enters new markets or verticals with a plan to break even within weeks, a strategy that paid off in Ghana, where it hit 1,000 daily orders within three months of its May 2025 launch without paid advertising.
“Nigeria was the first time we were launching a consumer product, so there were a lot of learnings that we had to do [and] a lot of growth channels that we had to iterate on. It took us a long time to figure out what marketing channels worked best for us and what customers wanted. We had a thesis initially, and it took us a while to fine-tune that thesis,” Aluko explained.
Diversification and quick commerce challenge
The company’s core revenue driver remains food delivery, but it is diversifying through initiatives like Chowpass, a subscription service launched in 2024 offering free delivery on orders above ₦3,000, reduced fees, and an ad-free experience, with over 70% of users renewing monthly.
Additionally, Chowdeck’s June 2025 acquisition of Mira, a point-of-sale provider for African food and hospitality businesses, aims to enhance inventory management and position the company as a logistics and vertical SaaS provider.
Dark stores are central to Chowdeck’s quick commerce push, designed to reduce delivery times and fees by minimising distances between fulfilment hubs and customers. However, challenges loom, including Lagos’s high commercial real estate costs, which are among the most expensive in Africa, and the need for specialised labour to manage dark store operations. Unlike global competitors like Gorillas and Getir, which faced heavy losses, Chowdeck is avoiding significant investments in automation for now, relying on Mira’s tools to improve efficiency.
Chowdeck faces competition from quick-commerce rival Glovo and grocery-focused startups like GoLemon and MyFoodAngels. Yet, its focus on local market expertise and sustainable economics has earned investor confidence, with the $9 million raise standing out among the few growth-stage deals for Nigerian startups in 2025. The company’s prior $2.5 million seed round in April 2024, backed by Y Combinator and Goodwater Capital, laid the foundation for its current trajectory.
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