Fraazo’s journey from farm fresh to fresh out of luck

In October 2021, direct-to-consumer grocery startup Fraazo raised its largest funding round. The $50 million fundraise, a mix of debt and equity, was meant to give Fraazo the means to fend off competition from the likes of BigBasket, Dunzo, Zepto, and Grofers, which were also wading into the quick commerce space. At the time, Fraazo’s founder and CEO Atul Kumar told the press that the funding would give Fraazos a runway of 12-18 months.

Well, it’s been just over 12 months now, and things aren’t looking good for the once-promising startup.

The first domino fell in July, when Fraazo shuttered its business in the National Capital Region. Over the next few months, things escalated rapidly. Multiple accounts of Fraazo not paying its employees, vendors or being unable to fulfil orders began pouring in.

“We have about Rs 90 lakh stuck with them. There is no one taking accountability,” a founder who worked with Fraazo as a vendor partner told The CapTable.