The roller-coaster years of Indonesian e-grocer HappyFresh

HappyFresh, an Indonesia-based online grocery platform, raised US$65 million in July, exceeding its initial targets because of strong demand from new and existing investors.

HappyFresh rider delivering goods / Photo credit: HappyFresh

The six-year-old startup has delivered groceries to hundreds of homes in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand, with its delivery fleet traveling thousands of kilometers.

However, CEO Guillem Segarra says HappyFresh is just getting started and probably scratching the surface on what’s ahead.

Speaking at the 2021 Tech in Asia Conference, Segarra shares the fascinating roller-coaster ride of HappyFresh.

The not so happy times

HappyFresh started operations in Indonesia and Malaysia in 2015. It went in an aggressive growth mode and rolled out in Thailand in the next six months, followed by operations in Taiwan and the Philippines.

But running a company is not like a sprint, but a marathon.

While the company focused on topline and growth, it failed to look at the fundamentals. “We realized relatively early on that we stretched ourselves quite too thin,” says Segarra, who previously worked for Lazada before joining HappyFresh in 2015.

HappyFresh CEO Guillem Segarra / Photo credit: HappyFresh

The startup had to cut back in Taiwan and the Philippines to zoom in on its major markets in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand.

See also: Indonesia e-grocery battle escalates as more players enter the fray

The years 2016 and 2017 were the most difficult for the company, as it went back to the drawing board and focused on unit economics, logistics, and new business units. These measures turned the tables for HappyFresh – from losing US$5 to US$10 per order, the company started seeing positive margins.