Quite a few Chicago tech startups are striking up new partnerships aimed at furthering their platforms and products; read on to find out more. This is the Built In Chicago weekly refresh.
Foxtrot Market pulled in $42M. With the Series B funding from Almanac Insights and Monogram Capital Partners, the Chicago-based cafe and corner store business is planning to double its store count by the end of the year, adding at least nine new locations in Chicago and Dallas as well as new markets. This round builds on the company’s $17 million raise last year. [PRNewswire]
Chowbus teams up with Omsom. The partnership between the food delivery company and flavor packet producer Omsom will help the company enter the meal kit space. The two are aiming to make traditional Asian dishes accessible to customers cooking at home. This move for Chowbus follows a period of growth. To date, the company has pulled in a total of $68.3 million. [Built In Chicago]
Chicago Tech Quote of the Week
P33 launched its TechRise initiative. The group is working alongside Verizon and incubator 1871 in order to distribute $5 million in funding to Black and Latinx founders of early stage tech startups. TechRise’s goal is to give founders of color access to larger sums of funding, strengthen a sense of community and establish new connections. [Built In Chicago]
Centro acquired QuanticMind. Having gained new resources from QuanticMind’s AI-powered martech platform, the enterprise automation company plans to enhance its Basis digital media product. Following this acquisition, the SaaS solution will include new platforms for paid search advertising, marketing intelligence and customer data. [Centro]
CardX will now serve customers in Kansas. The Chicago-based payments technology company announced it is expanding its services to businesses in Kansas as a result of a court decision overturning the state’s “no surcharge” law. This marks the 47th state where the company provides its technology solutions for credit card surcharging. The company plans to become a nationwide, 50-state provider. [PRNewswire]
Cision is acquiring Brandwatch. The Chicago-based news distribution company has plans to purchase digital consumer intelligence expert Brandwatch in a deal worth $450 million. The new partnership will allow the companies to provide customers with intel to help better their customer engagement in the areas of PR, marketing, research and product development. [Brandwatch]
