Starday Secures $11M Series A Funding Led By Slow Ventures And Equal Ventures

Starday, a Scottsdale, AZ-based AI-driven food innovation startup, raised $11M in Series A funding—$8M in equity led by Slow Ventures and Equal Ventures, and $3M in debt financing from Silicon Valley Bank—with backing from major global food and beverage companies. Cofounded by CEO Chaz Flexman, Lena Kwak, and Lily Burtis, Starday uses AI to identify unmet consumer needs and rapidly develop tailored food products and brands for retail. The funding will fuel its retail expansion and deepen collaborations with CPG brands and retailers. Starday’s products are already on shelves at Sprouts, Target, Walmart, Whole Foods, and more. INVESTORS: Slow Ventures, Equal Ventures & Silicon Valley Bank ROUND: Series A AMOUNT: $11,000,000 HQ: #Scottsdale #Arizona #VentureCapital #Starday #ChazFlexman #LenaKwak #LilyBurtis #SlowVentures #EqualVentures #SiliconValleyBank #TradedVC

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Barilla Acquires GOODLES For $88 Million Supported By Celebrity And Institutional InvestorsBarilla is acquiring GOODLES, the fast-growing better-for-you mac & cheese brand founded by Jen Zeszut and Paul Earle in 2020. Financial terms were not disclosed. GOODLES was last valued at $88M following its 2023 funding round. Built remotely during the pandemic after pitching 100+ investors and testing more than 1,000 product iterations, GOODLES launched in late 2021 with four flavors and sold through its initial inventory in just two weeks. The brand has since expanded across Target, Whole Foods, Walmart, Costco and other major retailers, growing from 0.8% to 7.8% of U.S. shelf-stable mac & cheese spending in three years and reaching profitability in 2024. GOODLES raised capital from an unusually deep mix of institutional, celebrity and athlete investors. Its publicly disclosed backers include L Catterton, Springdale Ventures, Third Craft Partners, Willow Growth Partners, Alumni Ventures, Purple Arch Ventures, 1st Course Capital, GingerBread Capital, Cosmic Venture Partners, Electric Feel Ventures and IMG-Endeavor, alongside Gal Gadot, David Grutman, Christina Aguilera, Matt Rutler, Klay Thompson, Khris Middleton, Domantas Sabonis, DK Metcalf, Weston McKennie, Sergio Garcia, Aaron Gordon, Marcus Smart, Ilana Muhlstein, Marissa Hermer, Mau y Ricky, The Montaners, Biz Stone and Allison Rose. Its $13M Series A was led by L Catterton in 2023, bringing GOODLES another step closer to becoming one of the biggest modern challengers to a category long dominated by legacy brands. Now, one of the world's largest pasta companies is buying it. From a pandemic-era idea to an acquisition by Barilla in six years. ACQUISITION: Undisclosed LAST VALUATION: $88M HQ: Santa Cruz, CA #VentureCapital #GOODLES #Barilla #CPG #TradedVC