Lead Edge Capital fronts $50 million Series C funding round for food distribution specialist Pepper
Pepper, a technology platform for independent food distributors, has raised $50 million in Series C funding to expand product innovation and deepen AI enabled capabilities. The round was led by Lead Edge Capital, with participation from existing investors including ICONIQ, Index Ventures, Greylock, Harmony Partners, and Interplay.
Pepper’s suite of products helps independent food distributors in modernising core workflows across ordering, sales and marketing, accounts receivable, and embedded payments. The company serves more than 500 distributors, representing approximately $30 billion in annual gross merchandise volume, and supports over 100,000 active operators nationwide.
“Food distribution is one of the largest and most fundamental markets in the world, yet it has long operated on manual systems and fragmented technology,” says Bowie Cheung, CEO at Pepper.
“This newest round of funding enables us to build the next generation of platform capabilities our customers rely on to run every critical part of their business, from ordering workflows to sales productivity and payments capabilities. Independent distributors can no longer survive on legacy technology, and our product suite gives these business owners the same technological advantage that has historically been reserved for food industry giants.”
“Our partnership with Pepper builds on our experience backing category defining technology platforms in fragmented, high potential markets,” says Aaron Darr, Principal at Lead Edge Capital. “Independent food distributors operate at enormous scale but remain siloed. Pepper provides the shared technology infrastructure that brings that market together.”
“Pepper has fundamentally changed how we operate day to day,” says Jackie Oakes, Director of Marketing at Flanagan Foodservice. “Their platform gives our team clarity and speed we didn’t have before, and it’s become a critical part of how we serve our customers at scale.”
"Pepper is building software for the future of food distribution – software we can put to work today,” says Brian Handley, President at Palmer Food Services. “As the industry evolves, their platform lets us invest confidently in long-term technology while continuing to deliver on our near-term goals."
RTIH AI in Retail Awards
Brarista, IBM Consulting, Foundit!, Quorso, Vusion, Sensei, Reckon.ai, EE, Walkbase, Globant, Riskified, and Goddiva were among the winners at the RTIH AI in Retail Awards, sponsored by VenHub Global, 3D Cloud, EdTech Innovation Hub, and Retail Technology Show.
Our 2026 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The Barbican in Central London on Thursday, 29th January, and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Lucy Porter.
In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “According to Amazon’s Andy Jassy: AI is a once in a lifetime reinvention of everything we know, and the largest technology transformation since the cloud.”
“Whether that’s overstating it or not, we're certainly seeing an increasing number of innovative, potentially game changing developments in this space across both traditional and digital retail spaces. And that is reflected in tonight's finalists, who are boosting customer experiences and tackling retailers' painpoints across the likes of physical stores, online, omnichannel, supply chain, and payments.”
“To quote one of our judges: I have to admit, judging these awards was so difficult. So many that would have been worthy winners. And great to see how AI has moved firmly into delivery mode. Firmly into delivering for customers and driving huge innovation.”
Congratulations to our 2026 winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Lucy Porter, and all those who attended our Thursday, 29th January gathering.
Stay tuned for an indepth review of the awards ceremony in the next edition of RTIH magazine.
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