Connecting supply chains, in-store systems, employee workflows and shoppers to fresher, healthier food
NEW YORK — Upshop and Invafresh have announced their merger, marking an important milestone for the food retail industry. Together, the two companies aim to solve the food industry’s major challenges: availability, affordability and waste. The combined Upshop aims to empower communities around the world by improving access to fresh, safe and affordable food, whether prepared, fresh or shelf-stable.
The combination of Upshop and Invafresh will change the face of food retail technology. The combined Upshop organization will deliver the first global retail enterprise operating platform built for the complexities of food. The platform will be used by more than 400 retailers operating in more than 50,000 stores across 35 countries, impacting millions of employees and shoppers every day.
Retailers face pressure to meet increasing operational and service expectations from suppliers, employees and shoppers. The challenge of introducing affordable, healthy options into stores is further complicated by technology issues that employees struggle to adopt. The integrated Upshop platform addresses these challenges with a single app, empowering employees to efficiently “win the day” and provide the best experience for shoppers.
CEO Shams Hinds shared his vision for the future: “We never settle for less – we strive for the best from our platform, our employees and our partnerships with food retailers. The impact our technology can have on retailers’ supply chains means millions of families have access to the freshest, healthiest foods every day.”
The integration comes at a critical time for the food retail industry, as a key FDA compliance requirement, FSMA204, challenges the market to improve data tracking capabilities. Upshop plans to formally release a solution that combines the best of both organizations’ food safety product suites at the end of July.
Additionally, food waste is a global challenge that requires a more comprehensive answer. Stores need solutions that can support every step of the food waste process: prevention, remediation and reporting. The combined organizations are preparing to launch a new global food waste initiative that leverages their cutting-edge product suite, unparalleled analytics and deep industry partnerships.
“By bringing together the unparalleled innovation of two industry leaders in food retail technology, we are poised to redefine what’s possible for our global community of retailers, employees and shoppers. We are committed to making investments that will have a significant impact in the industry, and this marks another major step in Appshop’s mission to improve the future of food retail on a global scale,” said Sarah Sommer, co-founder and partner at Level Equity.
The combination of Invafresh and Upshop represents a major leap in food retail technology, promising best-in-class in-store operations and innovative solutions that redefine the shopper experience. Retailers around the world will now have access to impactful, market-leading solutions, including:
- Fresh inventory and order management delivers eight-figure savings for top three North American grocers
- Providing Wegmans with the highest quality, most engaging and freshest experience
- Allowing grocers like Hy-Vee to flex their workforce for more efficient omnichannel order fulfillment
- Giving retailers like Sobey’s full control over DSD
- Launches more powerful foodservice operations platform for convenience stores to support expanded prepared food offerings and omnichannel workflows
Advisor
Baird acted as exclusive financial advisor to InvaFresh, and Davis, Polk & Wardwell LLP served as legal advisor.
William Blair & Company LLC acted as financial advisor to Upshop, and Goodwin Procter LLP acted as legal advisor.
To learn more about Upshop and its latest innovations, visit www.upshop.com/resources.
Mike Weber, CMO
813.849.1818
contact address
About UpShop
Upshop is a leading SaaS platform provider designed to streamline forecasting, ordering, production and inventory optimization processes for food retailers. Our integrated platform simplifies and enhances employee tasks and drives smarter, interconnected operations across fresh, centers, DSD and e-commerce divisions. With over 150 retailers and 30,000 stores leveraging our mission-critical operations platform, customers are seeing significant improvements in sales, loss reduction, food safety and sustainability across their stores. To learn more about the Total Store Operations Experience, visit https://upshop.com/ and see what customers are saying at Upshop Total Store Operations Experience – YouTube.
About Invafresh
Freshology’s combined experience is over 500 years, and Invafresh’s heritage has enabled fresh produce retailers to create exceptional store operational performance and differentiated customer experiences. As a leader in Freshology, Invafresh is deployed in over 350 grocery retailers across 35 countries around the world, transacting hundreds of millions of dollars in fresh produce revenue daily, providing AI-enhanced demand forecasting, merchandising, replenishment, sustainability and compliance, and waste prevention solutions.
About Level Equity
Level Equity is a private investment firm focused on providing capital to fast-growth software and technology-driven companies. Level provides long-term capital to all deal types to support continued growth. The firm has raised $3 billion in committed capital and backed over 100 companies since inception, with offices in New York, NY and Greenwich, CT. For more information about Level Equity, please visit www.levelequity.com.
