Tongcheng Life raises funds amid boom in fresh food delivery
Tongcheng Group's lifestyle services unit completed a financing round of US$200 million as online delivery of fresh food gains increasing appeal among consumers.
Tongcheng Life was established at the end of 2018 and targets fresh food grocery shopping in community neighborhoods.
It has focused on southern and eastern regions of China and plans to use the new funds to enhance its supply chain.
China's leading livestreaming and short video site JOYY Inc has pledged US$100 million in investment, along with venture capital firms such as GSR Ventures, Legend Capital, Engage Capital and Bertelsmann Asia Investments.
Tongcheng Life offers delivery and pickup service through small offline outlets and also allows orders to be placed through a WeChat mini program.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of JOYY Li Xueling commented that by bringing agricultural products to direct consumer channels, lifestyle services companies stand to benefit by connecting offline commercial services and digital infrastructure.
Founder and Chairman of Tongcheng Group Wu Zhixiang said it aims to effectively integrate business resources to help the recovery of consumption and boost local lifestyle services spending after the epidemic.
At the same time, Tongcheng Group and Tongcheng Life expect to serve some 1,000 cities and counties in China, and drive synergies between tourism, poverty alleviation and the distribution of agricultural products to enhance retailing efficiency.
Engage Capital founding partner Wang Shumin added that they are confident about Tongcheng Life's technology and digital network operation capabilities to improve the supply chain for agricultural products in the long term.
