Ugly but Delicious Eco-Friendly Vegetable Box 'Uglies' Secures 1.9 Billion KRW Investment

The eco-friendly imperfect agricultural products subscription service 'Uglies' announced on the 19th that it has secured 1.9 billion KRW in pre-Series A funding. Existing investor Spring Camp participated in the investment, along with new investors Smilegate Investment, Korea Credit Guarantee Fund, Capstone Partners, and Thanks Ventures.

Uglies is a D2C commerce platform that sources products classified as imperfect agricultural products?those that do not meet the standard specifications set by the existing distribution market?from production areas nationwide, repackages them into small portions, and sells them directly to consumers. Instead of paying by weight as in the traditional method when purchasing vegetables, consumers can subscribe to a ‘Vegetable Box’ consisting of a variety of small-quantity random vegetables. Depending on household size and preferences, customers can customize their purchase experience by selecting the size of the ‘Vegetable Box,’ delivery frequency, and even pre-selecting vegetables they do not want.

According to company officials, consumers, especially women in their 20s to 40s, have responded positively because they can purchase high-quality, eco-certified agricultural products at about 30% lower prices than the market, enjoy the fun of various seasonal products, and benefit from the convenience of receiving only what they need. To improve perceptions of imperfect agricultural products, the company shares diverse content such as recipes and farmers’ stories through online communities. Additionally, by establishing its own agricultural product center, Uglies strives to enhance customer satisfaction throughout the entire process?from procurement and packaging with eco-friendly materials to quality control and delivery.

CEO Choi Hyun-joo said, “Our team describes the sourcing of imperfect agricultural products as ‘rescuing’ them. Thanks to direct contact and on-the-ground efforts with over 4,000 farms, the amount of agricultural products rescued from being discarded has exceeded 555 tons. I believe our sincerity and execution capability were recognized, allowing us to successfully complete this pre-Series A round.”

He added, “Although the domestic market for non-standard agricultural products reaches up to 5 trillion KRW, the current farm distribution structure fails to properly monetize surplus vegetables, and environmental issues caused by discarded vegetables remain unresolved. We plan to scale up as a company that can solve these problems. We will grow into an ESG commerce business that considers future generations.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.