Vendease

Vendease operates a business-to-business food procurement platform for food service businesses in Africa, positioning itself as the channel through which restaurants buy their food supplies. Its marketplace lets restaurants and other retailers order directly from farms and food manufacturers rather than buying through middlemen or sending staff to open markets, and it also offers tools to digitize, track and automate procurement and inventory management, along with analytics intended to improve profitability and reduce waste. Broader descriptions of the company frame it as building an operating system for the food value chain, automating the movement of food from farms to restaurants and providing access to banking-type services alongside supply purchasing.

The company's current Lagos-facing offering centres on weekly catalogue commerce with credit. Buyers browse a live catalogue of proteins and seafood, grains and staples, oils and condiments, fruits and vegetables, dairy, beverages, packaging and disposables, cleaning and household goods, baking items and specialty products; every listed SKU is confirmed with a supplier and its price is held for seven days so operators can cost menus. Carts are sent to Vendease over WhatsApp, with order confirmation stated within two hours and protein delivery within 48 hours, and recurring buyers can join WhatsApp groups where locked prices are posted each Monday for reordering. Vendease consolidates multiple suppliers into a single delivery and single weekly invoice, and states it can pay a customer's existing suppliers so the customer owes Vendease instead.

A "Restaurant Capital" buy-now-pay-later product lets verified operators stock first and pay after sales, advertised with 48-hour approval, a 0.2% daily rate on a 14-day cycle and a maximum credit limit of ₦6 million per account. Fulfilment uses Cluster and Express routes across Lagos delivery zones including Ikoyi–VI–Lekki 1, Lekki–Ajah, Yaba–Surulere, Ikeja–Maryland–Ojodu, Alimosho, Ikorodu and a Lagos border zone, with an Abuja main axis also listed; delivery fees are calculated at checkout from zone and order size.

Founding story

Founded in 2019 in Lagos by a four-person founding team: Tunde Kara (co-founder and CEO), Oyewale "Wale" Oyepeju (co-founder and CTO), Olumide Fayankin (co-founder and COO) and Gatumi Aliyu (co-founder and chief product officer). Kara, who grew up on a farm, previously ran projects for global brands operating in Africa including Samsung, Coca-Cola, Google and General Electric. Oyepeju, who grew up in Ikeja, Lagos, had 13 years of technology delivery experience in Sub-Saharan Africa on projects including MTN Nigeria Global Virtual Top-Up, a Sony "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" multimedia studio in Lekki, and a Facebook/Android mobile app. Aliyu was previously co-founder and chief product officer of 54gene.

Business model

Vendease sells food and non-food supplies to food service businesses through its own catalogue, consolidating sourcing from verified suppliers into one delivery and one invoice per buyer, and layers a credit product on top: buy-now-pay-later financing at a stated 0.2% daily rate over a 14-day cycle, up to ₦6 million per account, including the option for Vendease to settle a customer's existing supplier balances so the receivable moves to Vendease. Delivery fees are charged at checkout based on zone and order size, with cheaper Cluster delivery when neighbouring buyers order together. Coverage of the company also describes procurement, inventory management, analytics and banking-type services offered to restaurants on the platform.

Revenue is associated with supplying catalogue goods to food service buyers at listed per-unit prices, delivery fees calculated at checkout, and financing charges on buy-now-pay-later credit stated at 0.2% per day on a 14-day cycle.

Traction

A third-party tracker lists total funding of $33 million and status "operating", with employee range 11-50, while the company's Y Combinator profile lists a team size of 250. The 2022 funding coverage described restaurants in cities across Nigeria and Ghana buying supplies on the platform with a 12-hour delivery guarantee. The current site shows live weekly stock with per-unit prices and available quantities across categories, eight listed delivery zones, and customer testimonials from a Lekki QSR, a Victoria Island restaurant and an Ikate caterer referencing pay-later cycles and recurring ordering.

Latest developments

The company's live site markets a Lagos-centred weekly procurement offering: supplier-confirmed catalogue prices locked for seven days, WhatsApp cart submission with confirmation within two hours, Cluster and Express delivery across eight listed zones spanning Lagos island and mainland plus an Abuja axis, supplier consolidation into one invoice with the option for Vendease to pay a buyer's existing suppliers, and a "Restaurant Capital" buy-now-pay-later programme approved within 48 hours at 0.2% per day on a 14-day cycle up to ₦6 million per account.