Avo closing business operations in Israel, cutting back on U.S. activity

Israeli delivery platform Avo is shutting down its Israeli activity and firing all of its local employees. Earlier this month Avo announced that it was firing hundreds of employees and streamlining its operations. According to estimates the company is on the verge of a complete shutdown and is seeking a buyer for its activity in the U.S. As of now, the company will continue to employ a couple dozen employees in Israel and the U.S. Calcalist revealed earlier this month that Avo was firing 500 of its total 750 employees, 350 of which were based out of Israel.

Avo employees.

Avo raised $45 million in Series B funding led by Insight Partners last September, taking its total funding to $80 million. The company was founded in 2017, originally delivering baby products to parents at nurseries in Tel Aviv. Since then, Avo has expanded its offering and reach across Israel and into the U.S. (including New York, New Jersey, Chicago, and Houston), serving thousands of residential communities, corporations, hospitals and universities. Avo provides a technological platform for a consumer network made of apartment buildings and big companies. It allows any employee or tenant to order any product they need without shipping fees. The company said last year that growth had increased dramatically with revenue growing 1000% over the past two years.

Dekel Valtzer, CEO and Co-Founder of Avo, explained to Calcalist earlier this month the reasoning behind the painful restructuring. “Unfortunately, we postponed the decision of raising a significant round to the beginning of 2022. When the year began we understood in management the direction in which the market is heading and that a significant round of $100 million is no longer possible. We understood that we can mainly rely on our current investors, who clarified that they would support any decision we take. We decided to formulate a plan that would allow us to embark on a new course in a stronger position.”