Seattle-based craft beef startup Crowd Cow announced a successful $8 million Series A led by Madrona Venture Group, with the inclusion of new investors Ashton Kutcher, and Guy Oseary’s Sound Ventures, and the return of existing investor Joe Montana’s Liquid 2 Ventures.
Launched in 2015 by Joe Heitzeberg and Ethan Lowry, Crowd Cow offers a curated ranch-to-table experience and unprecedented traceability and transparency for beef buyers. Through partnering with family farms and ranches, the business allows buyers to select their specific cow and cuts of meat to be delivered to their home along with the story of the farm where the cow was raised.
When the concept was launched, it originally was done so as a crowdfunding campaign, whereby the founders invited 100 people to buy shares giving them access to locally-sourced and traceable meat. The idea sold out within 24 hours, and went on to generate sales topping $1 million. Last year the company expanded nationwide, and added specialized cuts of chicken, pork, and olive wagyu to its selections.
By combining transparency with a great consumer experience, they are building a company and brand that has the power to transform not only the lives of their consumers, but of their suppliers,” said Scott Jacobson, managing director, Madrona Venture Group. “We are excited to back this incredibly talented team and to work with them as they grow to a national scale.”
The Disruptors
The beef industry has operated in basically the same way for decades, and entrepreneurs are beginning to see windows of opportunity for disruption in the category.
In 2014 the Victor Smorgon Group (VSG) launched My Cow in Australia, a similar venture to Crowd Cow. Backed by Melbourne’s Calvert-Jones family, My Cow sells an entire cow to wealthy Chinese buyers; slaughters it, and stores the cuts in a secure freezer to be supplied to the buyer on demand. Throughout the entire process, the buyer is able to see how the cow is fed and managed until the point of delivery.
Another is Porter Road. Founded in Tennessee by chefs and butchers Chris Carter and James Peisker, and backed by some of the top venture firms in the food space, including Slow Ventures, BoxGroup, Tribeca Venture Partners, and Max Ventures, Tech Crunch reports that the company closed on a funding round of $3.7 million in early May in support of its similar business model. Working with local farmers, Port Road sources meat that meets the highest standards from livestock that is raised outside, are fed vegetarian diets of non-GMO feed, and are attentively raised. Its meat is hand-cut in its Kentucky facility, and is dry aged for 14 days to improve flavor.
For Consumers and Farmers
Crowd Cow sees its mission as not only to provide the best meat to consumers, but to improve business for farmers as well.
“We’ve spent a ton of time on the road looking for and meeting with suppliers with great reputations and amazing-tasting meat,” said Ethan Lowry, co-founder of Crowd Cow. “It’s gratifying to know we’re exposing consumers to the greater variety of choice in their food selections, and are helping support small, local farmers.”
Crowd Cow plans to use the capital gained through this round to support its expansion into offering a wider variety of animal proteins, and to build out its infrastructure in order to streamline its delivery services.
-Lynda Kiernan