Autonomous Store Startup Boxy Raises $28M - pymnts.com

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Autonomous convenience store startup Boxy has raised $28.4 million (25 million euros), fueling its plans to expand across its home country of France.

As EU Startups reported Thursday (Feb. 17), the Series A funding round was led by new investor Serena, with historical investors CapHorn and LocalGlobe as well as angel investors.

The company says it will use the money to help meet its goal of opening a new store per week this year, in hopes of having 1,000 stores online by 2025. Although it’s now working on expanding its network in the Paris region, Boxy says it is looking at other parts of France, including the Rhône-Alpes and Hauts de France regions.

Founded in 2019, Boxy aims to help French consumers who can’t access retail services enjoyed by people in the biggest cities.

“With every other shopping experience, there is compromise,” said David Gabai and Tom Hayat, the company’s founders.

“Large supermarkets are cheap, but often far and time consuming,” they said. “Smaller convenience stores are close by, but expensive. Delivery services are convenient, but there’s a waiting time, a fee and they’re not available everywhere. Very few are open 24/7. Our mission is to deliver uncompromising convenience through every experience.”

Boxy says it has selected 250 everyday products for its stores, which are built from recycled shipping containers.

After downloading an application, entering their identity and registering a payment method, shoppers can access the store around the clock using a QR code. Once inside, they can select their items and leave the store, receiving an invoice moments later.

Read more: Poland’s Żabka Leads Europe’s Autonomous Store Race

The news comes one month after Żabka, the largest convenience store chain in Poland, announced it had opened the largest chain of autonomous stores in Europe.

The company said it had launched 25 artificial intelligence (AI)-powered stores under the Żabka Nano brand, 10 more than the 15 “Just Walk Out” style stores Amazon has opened in the U.K.

If Boxy sticks to its store-per-week goal, it would soon have them beat. Its website shows 20 stores in France, with the 21st due to open soon.

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