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§ Private Profile · Berkeley, CA, USA
Zero Grocery is a technology company.
Zero Grocery has raised $15.0M across 2 funding rounds.
Zero Grocery has raised $15.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Zero Grocery operates an online delivery service providing plastic-free groceries. The company delivers fresh, high-quality food and household goods, eliminating single-use plastics. It uses reusable glass jars and compostable packaging for all orders, offering consumers a convenient, responsible way to shop for a diverse product selection.
Zuleyka Strasner founded the company in 2018. Her inspiration came from witnessing widespread plastic pollution during a trip, prompting her adoption of a zero-waste lifestyle. This experience led to the insight that a more sustainable food system could exist without compromising consumer convenience or product quality.
The service targets consumers prioritizing environmental impact and seeking accessible, eco-friendly shopping. Zero Grocery's vision is to transform the food supply chain, removing plastic waste. It empowers individuals to easily make sustainable choices, aiming to make responsible consumption a convenient and integrated part of daily life.
Zero Grocery is a tech-enabled grocery delivery startup founded in 2019 that offers 100% plastic-free groceries and household items, delivered next-day from sustainable suppliers using jars, boxes, and compostable packaging.[1][2][3] It serves eco-conscious consumers in urban areas like the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles, solving the problem of plastic waste in grocery delivery by re-architecting the supply chain for bulk purchasing, direct supplier partnerships, and zero-plastic consumer packaging—while maintaining competitive pricing and convenience.[1][2][4] The company has achieved early growth through the COVID-19 demand surge for unique, hard-to-find sustainable goods, expanding from testing in 2018 to thousands of customers and over 1,100 SKUs by 2021, backed by $4.7 million in funding from investors like Precursor Ventures, Sway Ventures, and Backstage Capital.[2][3]
Zero Grocery was founded in 2019 by Zuleyka Strasner, a one-woman founder with a background as Chief of Staff at Felicis Ventures and Varo Money, Policy Advisor to Jeremy Corbyn, and holder of a Master's in Politics from Oxford University.[2][3] The idea emerged from Strasner's vision for a "magic-like" grocery delivery service that eliminates plastic hassle entirely, driven by broader motivations to fix systemic food supply issues like waste, insecurity, and middleman markups.[1][3] Early testing began in 2018 in Berkeley, California, with an official launch in November 2019; the COVID-19 pandemic provided pivotal traction in 2020, as Zero's bulk, plastic-free supply chain thrived amid shortages at big retailers, fueling exponential demand and enabling expansion to Los Angeles in February 2021.[1][2]
Zero Grocery rides the sustainability and zero-waste trend in food tech, amplified by post-COVID consumer shifts toward eco-friendly, contactless delivery and scrutiny of plastic pollution.[1][2] Timing aligns with rising urban demand for plastic-free options amid regulatory pressures on packaging and supply chain transparency, where Zero's direct supplier control differentiates it from giants struggling with individual packaging.[1][4] Market forces like food insecurity (exacerbated by fragmented chains) and bulk-buying efficiencies favor its model, influencing the ecosystem by proving scalable tech can optimize for quality, price, and waste reduction—potentially inspiring competitors to adopt similar re-architecting.[1][5]
Zero Grocery is poised to scale as the leading U.S. plastic-free grocer, leveraging its supply chain tech to expand geographically and into full sustainability platforms covering homewares and beyond.[1][2] Trends like circular economy mandates, AI-driven logistics, and climate-conscious investing will propel growth, though challenges in smaller markets and data-driven expansion persist.[1] Its influence may evolve by setting standards for tech-enabled sustainability, pressuring incumbents and amplifying impact on food systems—cementing Strasner's vision of Zero as a movement redefining cleaner, healthier grocery access.[1][2]
Zero Grocery has raised $15.0M across 2 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $12.0M Seed in February 2022.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 1, 2022 | $12M Seed | KEN Denman | — | Announced |
| Sep 1, 2020 | $3M Seed | — | Backstage Capital, BITKRAFT Ventures, Creandum, Elevate Capital, Hoxton Ventures, Paladin Capital Group, Pareto Holdings, Gerald Parloiu, IAN Hogarth, Pierre Lavaux | Announced |
Zero Grocery has raised $15.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Zero Grocery's investors include Ken Denman, Backstage Capital, BITKRAFT Ventures, Creandum, Elevate Capital, Hoxton Ventures, Paladin Capital Group, Pareto Holdings, Gerald Parloiu, Ian Hogarth, Pierre Lavaux.