UChicago Startup Investment Program has contributed once more to Foxtrot’s funding, participating in the convenience store operator’s $100m series C round.

Foxtrot, a US-based convenience store and café operator, collected $100m in a series C round backed by University of Chicago (UChicago)’s Startup Investment Program on Tuesday. D1 Capital Partners led the round, while Monogram, Imaginary, Almanac, Wittington, Fifth Wall, Beliade, Lerer Hippeau and Revolution also took part. UChicago contributed $500,000 to the round and has now invested $1.65m in Foxtrot altogether. Founded in 2014, Foxtrot takes inspiration from traditional corner stores but combines them with an e-commerce model that allows consumers nationwide to book on-demand delivery or pickup from one of the chains’ 16 brick and mortar shops across Chicago, Dallas and Washington, DC. The series C capital will enable Foxtrot to open 25 additional locations this year, including expansions into Boston and Austin. The company expects to enter New York, Nashville and Miami in 2023, while also growing its presence in existing markets. Cash has also been allocated to other areas, including growing Foxtrot’s private-label offering, and trebling the engineering team’s size over the next year. Mike LaVitola, co-founder and chief executive of Foxtrot, said: “As we exit the pandemic and our lives continue to normalise following a challenging and eye-opening two years, we expect that retail and hospitality will become increasingly important in creating a sense of community and driving discovery in a world that has been lacking this experience for quite some time. “With this new round of funding, we will continue to accelerate the expansion of our brick and mortar presence, enter new and emerging markets and double down on new store formats that answer consumer demand for immersive programming and highly curated assortment. “Our investments in technology will enhance our retail experience and drive omnichannel growth. We look forward to bringing Foxtrot to new neighbourhoods, and highlighting the small makers that make our industry so exciting.” Foxtrot has now raised $160m in funding overall, it said. UChicago was among the investors in a $42m series B round in February 2021. The company also raised $17m in February 2020 from investors including UChicago in February 2020, but it is unclear how that relates to the series B. UChicago had already contributed to a $6m series A round in 2018. – Image courtesy of Foxtrot

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Thierry Heles

Thierry Heles is the editor of Global University Venturing, host of the Beyond the Breakthrough interview podcast and responsible for the monthly GUV Gazette (sign up here for free).