Food & Drink Foodtech startup Calo plans IPO after $25m funding round By Neil Halligan January 2, 2025, 5:17 PM Unsplash+/Curated Lifestyle Calo offers meal subscriptions that customers can order and arrange online Startup Calo raised $25m Offers meal susbcriptions IPO planned in two years Saudi food technology startup Calo is planning to list on the country’s stock exchange following a raise of SAR94 million ($25 million) in its Series B funding round. Based in Riyadh, Calo specialises in personalised meal subscriptions and also has a bricks-and-mortar offering. It is embarking on an accelerated expansion phase, increasing its physical locations beyond its five cafes in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. It also operates in the UAE, Kuwait and Qatar. It intends to invest further in personalisation through artificial intelligence and introduce new products. The funding round was led by Nuwa Capital and drew participation from STV and Khwarizmi Ventures, along with regional family offices. Calo extended the round to a total of $50 million, with an additional $25 million raise planned for the first quarter of 2025. Startup news website TechCrunch said Calo is now valued at around $250 million, citing multiple sources. Founded in 2019, Calo has doubled its revenue over the past five years, and said its annualised revenue is now into nine figures. Clampdown begins on Saudi’s unlicensed hospitality Gulf restaurants urged to keep it local Down on the farm, Saudi Arabia has a $9.8bn hole to fill Founder and CEO Ahmed Al Rawi said the company has global growth plans: “There’s no reason why we can’t export innovation from the region to the rest of the world.” Calo plans to complete its first acquisition of an unnamed business in the first quarter of 2025. TechCrunch said the company is a UK-based food startup. Calo will also recruit for leadership roles ahead of a planned IPO in two years. The company previously raised $26 million from investors including Vision Ventures, 500 Startups, Savour Ventures, Nama Ventures and others.
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