Vilnius-based Saltz has secured a €3 million seed round to help clients purchase fresh goods directly from producers and wholesalers. The round was led by Lifeline Ventures, with participation from Change Ventures, Illusian Family Office, and business angels.
- Saltz was launched in 2022 by Tomas Šlimas and Andrius Šlimas, the founders of Oberlo, a dropshipping service that was acquired by Shopify, and Reinis Strodahs.
- The startup develops a marketplace that connects premium producers directly with customers from across 5 countries in Europe. Through Saltz's platform, the startup says, chefs can purchase products directly from farms or regional suppliers, enabling them the access to set producer prices and delivery costs.
- Vilnius-based Saltz has already acquired several global chains of restaurants and hotels, including Hilton, Marriott, Gaspar’s, DioGo’s, Nolita, and Nuta.
- The startup pays a lot of attention to sustainability. Specifically, all products and ingredients are being delivered by the sellers without any environmental impact on the planet, Saltz claims. Moreover, it is engaged in the carbon removal projects in manufacturing, construction, and agriculture, saving around 13,546 kg of CO2.
The investors in the round include:
- Lifeline Ventures is a Finnish venture capital fund that aids startups focusing on sales, technology, financing, strategy, and operations. It participates in angel, seed, and Series A rounds, with tickets ranging between €100,000 and €2 million.
- Tallinn-based Change Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in Baltic founders from Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Its tickets range between €100,000 and €500,000.
“The business is growing rapidly, and we are excited to follow these experienced founders into the world of restaurant supply chain,” partner at Change Ventures, Andris K. Berzins, stated.
- Illusian Family Office was founded in 2014 by Ilkka Paananen. It supports and collaborates with founders that create products and services that help their communities.
- The round also saw participation from the CEO of Wolt, Miki Kuusi, co-founder and COO of Vinted, Mantas Mikuckas, Partner at Dig Ventures, Rytis Vitkauskas, and former Shopify executives.
