Below-the-radar supply apps are gaining floor within the U.S. by courting Asian eating places 

NEW YORK – When Kelly Wu feels sick and desires a supply of congee, the Chinese language porridge she grew up consuming, she opts for a platform many could not have heard of.

The New York Metropolis resident would not open apps from multi-billion greenback corporations like Uber Eats or DoorDash. As a substitute, the 22-year-old pulls up Fantuan, a rising Vancouver-based startup that focuses particularly on the ecosystem surrounding Asian cuisines.

“I really feel prefer it’s simply the equal of ‘Asian’ DoorDash or Uber Eats,” Wu mentioned in an interview with CNBC.

Digital meals ordering and supply platforms have grow to be ingrained in on a regular basis American life over the previous decade, with corporations like Uber Eats, DoorDash and GrubHub changing into family names. However on the subject of Asian meals, connoisseurs like Wu and restaurant homeowners are choosing smaller platforms like Fantuan or competitor HungryPanda.

Since Fantuan first entered the U.S. in 2019, Feng mentioned it has expanded to greater than 50 cities starting from giant metropolises similar to Los Angeles to varsity cities like Davis, Calif. The corporate’s U.S. footprint was boosted by its acquisition of Chowbus’ supply enterprise final yr.

Moderately than run giant promoting campaigns, Fantuan primarily spreads the phrase by means of offering signal holders at storefronts and stickers for supply drivers. The startup has additionally labored with influencers on platforms like TikTok and RedNote, a well-liked short-form video app in China.

Feng mentioned Fantuan’s major buyer bases are first-generation immigrants and worldwide college students craving genuine cuisines tied to their residence international locations. He mentioned the corporate meets with school scholar associations to search out potential prospects coming to the U.S. from Asia.

However Feng mentioned there’s potential for the app to achieve a wider viewers as meals together with bubble tea grow to be mainstream within the U.S. The corporate mentioned it noticed a development charge for gross merchandise worth of greater than 20% within the U.S. final yr, earlier than capturing as much as 31% within the first quarter of 2025.

“With the immigration and the social media, everyone loves Asian meals,” Feng mentioned. “If they need genuine choices, they will even use the app.”

Following the Chowbus acquisition, many enterprise homeowners and customers think about HungryPanda as the primary competitor to Fantuan. Wu mentioned she additionally has HungryPanda’s app, however hasn’t ordered on it since she first started utilizing Fantuan, and has been happy with the service.

HungryPanda didn’t reply to CNBC’s interview inquiry for this story. HungryPanda introduced final yr that it raised $55 million, which will probably be utilized in half to gasoline growth efforts in North America.

In relation to the broader meals supply app panorama, Feng mentioned he sees the corporate “co-existing” alongside bigger-name corporations slightly than “competing.” That is as a result of the draw of Fantuan is connecting genuine – and sometimes smaller – companies to prospects as a substitute of attempting to win over giant chains that already use different platforms.

“It’s totally exhausting … long-term, to compete with the monopolies,” he mentioned. “However we need to preserve our distinctive manner.”