ChowNow Grabs $21M Series C

Developers of ChowNow Inc., a mobile application for ordering at restaurants, raised $21 million in a Series C fundraising round, which the company said it will use to grow its operations and expand into new markets.

The funding round was finalized May 8, bringing ChowNow’s total raised to $60 million and values the Santa Monica-based startup at $115 million, according to PitchBook Data Inc.

The latest infusion came from repeat investor Catalyst Investors, based in New York, and Westwood-based 3L Capital. As part of the round, 3L Capital Managing Partner Shawn Colo joined ChowNow’s board.

Santa Monica-based Upfront Ventures and Bonfire Ventures have invested in ChowNow’s prior funding rounds.

The company reports its online ordering platform is used by more than 11,000 independent restaurants across the United States and Canada, and has facilitated roughly $1 billion in transactions since its launch in 2011.

ChowNow said funding may also go toward eliminating commission fees on orders placed through the platform — a direct challenge to competitors GrubHub Inc., Postmates Inc. and Uber Technologies Inc.’s Uber Eats platform.

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