Sodexo Ventures backs China catering platform

Meican was founded in 2011 and claims to be China’s leading corporate catering platform, providing comprehensive dining solutions through its online platform and mobile apps for staff meals, corporate events, smart cafeterias, and business dinners. The company’s corporate clients in China include prominent homegrown players such as Alibaba Group, Baidu, Mobike, and Lenovo, along with such global brands as Walmart and Pfizer.

Sodexo offers a wide range of services, including food and beverage, facilities management, and personal and home services, in 72 countries. Sodexo Ventures, founded in 2016, is intended to give the conglomerate access to new growth opportunities by partnering with innovative start-ups.

Meican has received several previous rounds of funding, most recently a Series D round from Goldman Sachs in 2017. With the new investment, the company plans to expand its operations in China, leveraging Sodexo’s management expertise and brand relationships in the country to identify areas where the two companies can develop complementary products.

“The partnership with Meican will help to develop and enhance our food services across China,” said Martin Boden, Sodexo’s president in China, in a statement. “With broadened touch points from online to offline, we will be able to better serve our clients and consumers and enrich the consumer experience in this rapidly evolving market.”

Sodexo Ventures’ first investment in China was a commitment of undisclosed size last year in Aeye-Go, a developer of smart visual checkout systems based in Shanghai. Aeye-Go launched its technology last year via a pilot program in several Sodexo sites in Shanghai. It is currently working with the French company to install its services across China, with global expansion to follow.

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