Splendid Spoon Gets $12 Million Investment to Expand US Delivery

For years, pre-made vegan meals that were healthy and delivered to your doorstep remained elusive, which is why Nicole Centeno started Splendid Spoon back in 2013, to give people the chance to eat healthy, plant-based meals at home. Now as Splendid Spoon faces competition from other vegan delivery services – and Doordash makes it possible to dial up any type of cuisine you want – Splendid Spoon is pushing ahead with an expansion that will make it even easier to get plant-based food at home. With a new infusion of $12 million, the plant-based meal delivery service is growing and making it possible for people across the US to order up their sustainable food options.

The company just announced that it is stepping up its production and delivery services for its specialized plant-based soups, bowls, and smoothies that ill be available across most of the US. The funding from Swedish company Nicoya, and others such as Danone Manifesto Ventures, Torch Capital, Rent the Runway Co-Founder Jennifer Fleiss, and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, means that Splendid Spoon is positioned to be your go-to choice for healthy plant-based meals.

Centeno was a trained chef and former biologist before starting Splendid Spoon with the goal of making vegan meals such as soups and bowls more accessible and convenient for all. What started as a series of pop-ups at Brooklyn farmer's markets grew quickly to become a popular delivery option across several states. Still, Centeno says that the pandemic was especially challenging for her. Not only did she welcome her third child in March 2020, but supply chain issues made food delivery extremely difficult.

During the height of the pandemic, the company managed to feed healthcare providers and keep going, and was poised to bounce back and even grow in 2021. Now, Splendid Spoon offers 50 plant-based menu options in every state across the Continental US. Today, Splendid Spoon is planning a line-up of product launches in Q1 of 2022 and has over 20,000 subscribers, having grown by over 40% in the last year.

"We are thrilled to join the Nicoya portfolio and to be a part of their movement to transform the global food system and create meaningful impact for people, planet, and health," Founder and Co-CEO of Splendid Spoon Nicole Centeno said.

More consumers than ever are looking for plant-based foods, meaning that Splendid Spoon intends to keep up with the rising demand. Since 2020, the company revealed its subscriber base has doubled, recently surpassing 20,000 customers. The subscription allows people to start incorporating plant-based dishes into their diets with no experience cooking vegan or plant-forward foods.

"Their mission-driven approach and unrivaled expertise in brand strategy and food tech align with our goals to scale and innovate, with our customers at the forefront," Splendid Spoon co-CEO, said.

By joining Nicoya’s profile, Splendid Spoon expects to scale up the core product line by launching new products and introducing new categories. In addition to the brand's current On-Demand store and meal plans, the company will debut new meal programs. Centano intends to expand the plant-based Splendid Spoon team.

“Splendid Spoon has emerged as an innovator in the healthy eating category by efficiently streamlining the business model and connecting with its avid customer base,” CEO at Nicoya Christopher Slim said. “Nicole’s vision a decade ago, to simplify plant-based eating for everyday Americans, is as important as ever, and we’re excited to take an active role in Splendid Spoon’s growth.”

Splendid Spoon is catering to a consumer base that’s ordering take-out at unprecedented rates. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers have increased their delivery budgets. Alongside Splendid Spoon, several other companies have started launching plant-based delivery services. Nestle’s brand Freshly recently launched a Purely Plant menu that features six plant-based dishes that boast impressive nutritional and healthy values.

The vegan food pioneer Impossible Foods also recently joined the delivery category, launching The Impossible Shop at 39 ghost kitchens across the United States. The plant-based delivery services provide consumers with easy access to easy, affordable vegan meals that can be delivered straight to people’s doorsteps.

Late last year, Grubhub released its 2021 “Year in Food” report to examine delivery trends nationwide, finding that the Impossible Cheeseburger ranked as the most-ordered food item of the year. The meatless burger surged in popularity by 442 percent. Since last year, the report found that vegan take-out and delivery orders rose by 16 percent, confirming that consumers want more plant-based delivery than ever, and they want it delivered.

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