StreetDots, the online street food platform, has secured a further £500k in funding as it looks to expand its network of dots from 50 to 200 in the next twelve months.
The latest round of funding comes from private Singapore fund B.O.H Pte as an addition to its £350,000 initial investment in StreetDots in January this year.
The new funding will also allow the company, which was founded by Atholl Milton and retail designer Darren Callcott in 2014 to add features to its Trade Smart booking app for traders and its customer-facing StreetDots app.
StreetDots works with private and public land owners, such as British Land and Southwark Council to open pitches or ‘dots’ that can be booked by traders, from street food vans to retail brands, with an app that takes care of compliance and licensing.
The landlord benefits from extra rent and an enticing space that hosts a different trader each day.
To date, it has focused on street food vendors, but will start to introduce other types of retail to its network, from artisan producers to retail brands wanting to reach new customers.
Milton said: “We’re not only hoping to streamline the business of outdoor retail trading, we’re hoping to grow the market. UK street trading laws are guided by legislation that is over a century old and its processes seem to be stuck in about the same era. Our vision is a digitally managed UK-wide network of dots that enliven our streets and bring the country’s most innovate businesses direct to customers.”
