Grocery data specialist LocalExpress bags $6.2 million in funding round headed up by OXZ Capital

LocalExpress, an AI native unified commerce platform working with grocery and food retailers across the US, Canada and LatAm, has secured $6.2 million in venture funding led by OXZ Capital.

The company says it has built AI powered systems that harmonise and process millions of transactions and inventory updates across hundreds of retailers.

Bagrat Safarian, CEO and Co-Founder at LocalExpress, says: "From day one of launching LocalExpress, we have been helping independents with structuring, harmonising and enriching their grocery data.”

“We have built a tremendous data transformation library and now with the AI revolution, we're growing our proprietary grocery data AI to become the Zapier for grocery data - seamlessly connecting and distributing intelligence across the entire tech ecosystem.”

“This amplifies the data intelligence we've built and helps grocers make smarter decisions with timely analytics. OXZ Capital's investment and expertise will help us scale further and faster, particularly as we bring more AI powered solutions to market that empower independent retailers to compete at the highest level." 

Lester Ng, Chief Investment Officer at OXZ Capital, says: “LocalExpress stood out to us as a transformative platform at the intersection of e-commerce, AI and grocery - a sector primed for digital acceleration.”

“This represents the first investment OXZ Capital has made outside of Asia and the first in the retail technology sector. We are excited to support the team as they continue to revolutionise grocery retail through unified commerce solutions.”

2025 RTIH INNOVATION AWARDS

Unified commerce will be a key focus area at the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards.

The awards. which are now open for entries, celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our 2024 hall of fame entrants were revealed during an event which took place at RIBA’s 66 Portland Place HQ in Central London on 21st November, and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by comedian Lucy Porter.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “The event is now into its sixth year and what a journey it has been. The awards started life as an online only affair during the Covid outbreak, before launching as a small scale in real life event and growing year on year to the point where we’re now selling out this fine, historic venue.”

He added: “Congratulations to all of our finalists. Many submissions did not make it through to the final stage, and getting to this point is no mean feat. Checkout-free stores, automated supply chains, immersive experiences, on-demand delivery, next generation loyalty offerings, inclusive retail, green technology. We’ve got all the cool stuff covered this evening.”

“But just importantly we’ve got lots of great examples of companies taking innovative tech and making it usable in everyday operations - resulting in more efficiency and profitability in all areas.”

Congratulations to our 2024 winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Lucy Porter, and all those who attended November's gathering. 

For further information on the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards, please fill in the below form and we will get back to you asap.