Foodtech Platform Thrive Shuts Down Operations Amid Resource Constraints

Thrive, a foodtech platform from India, has officially ceased operations, as announced by its cofounder and CEO, Krishi Fagwani. In a LinkedIn post, Fagwani cited a lack of resources as the primary reason for this difficult decision.

Over the years, Thrive has endeavored to create a more equitable approach to food delivery and discovery. With its focus on lower commissions, fairer pricing, social-led discovery, and fostering human-centered connections between restaurants and customers, the cofounder reflected on the challenges faced in scaling this vision. He noted, “However, scaling that vision required resources we couldn’t secure.”

Fagwani highlighted that the food delivery market is overwhelmingly dominated by a “few well-funded giants,” making it “extraordinarily challenging” for smaller platforms like Thrive to compete.

In the wake of this closure, the team is working on transitioning Thrive’s services, including Thrive ONDC, Thrive Direct, and the Thrive Marketing Suite, to suitable industry partners. This move is aimed at ensuring continuity for Thrive’s restaurant partners. He assured that all services, including payments and tax compliance, will remain uninterrupted throughout the transition period.

Founded in 2020 by Fagwani, Dhruv Dewan, and Karan Chechani, Thrive had built a network of over 14,000 restaurants across 80 cities. The startup provided restaurants with the flexibility to either manage their own deliveries or partner with third-party logistics. Its self-serve tool allowed restaurants to create sub-portals within the platform, enabling them to receive direct online orders from customers. Thrive’s commission rate of 3% was notably lower than the 18-25% charged by competitors like Swiggy and Zomato.

In 2023, Thrive gained significant attention when Coca-Cola acquired a 15% stake in the platform, marking its first investment in an Indian startup. Additionally, Jubilant FoodWorks, the operator of Domino’s India, had acquired a 35% stake in Thrive for approximately INR 25 Crores in 2021.

With Thrive’s shutdown, it joins the ranks of at least a dozen other funded startups that have closed operations in 2024, highlighting the ongoing challenges faced by emerging companies in the competitive foodtech landscape.