Gousto box

Gousto has won funding from MMC Partners

Recipe box business Gousto has secured a major investment from the venture capital fund MMC Ventures.

Gousto, which sells dinner kits containing raw ingredients and recipe cards for cooking meals from scratch, was turned down for funding in an episode of Dragon’s Den earlier this year.

However, the start-up has secured investment from other sources, including unnamed leading figures in the food industry and the Angel CoFund.

In the latest injection of funding, Gousto has closed a $2m investment led by MMC Ventures and supported by existing investors.

The money will be ploughed back into the business to improve the recipes and strengthen relationships with farm suppliers and producers.

“We had three funding offers and went with MMC because we think they really understand our concept best and are supporting us with their entire network – we’re really excited to be working with them,” said Gousto co-founder Timo Schmidt.

MMC Ventures investment partner Jon Coker said: “We believe there is a significant opportunity for disruption in online grocery but it is a tough market to execute in. That is why we have backed Gousto – they have achieved a market-leading position in a short period of time on a limited budget and we believe our investment will allow them to really accelerate the growth.”

Since it started trading in August last year, Gousto has grown into a business delivering more than 26,000 meals a month.