Farmthru is building a new kind of grocery store — powered by high-efficiency warehouse hubs, stocked with products sourced from local farms, and designed to give customers something supermarkets can't: real transparency on where their food comes from and why it's worth buying.
Register Your InterestTwo companies control 67% of Australian grocery — and families are paying the price.
Grocery costs in Australia have surged over 24% in the last five years — the highest increase in the developed world. Coles and Woolworths, currently facing Federal Court proceedings over "illusory discounts," have created a system where neither producers nor consumers win.
For producers, the duopoly squeezes margins and locks out smaller operators who can't meet punishing supply chain terms. For consumers, the result is rising prices, declining trust, and a frustrating lack of choice.
Families who want quality are forced into two bad options: overpriced boutique stores, or the time-consuming trek to a big-box warehouse 40 minutes away. The system doesn't need another supermarket. It needs a different model entirely.
Australians are trading down on staples — and reinvesting in what matters.
Something interesting is happening: 80% of shoppers have switched to private labels for pantry staples, but they're redirecting those savings into categories they care about — particularly quality proteins. Wagyu beef is now the 4th most-ordered food item on delivery apps, even under cost-of-living pressure.
This isn't about being a premium health store. It's about being the place where people come for quality products they can trust — and stay for everything else, because the value and transparency are better than what they're getting now.
Relationships that take years to build and can't be replicated by a competitor with a chequebook.
Our competitive advantage isn't a feature — it's the network of direct, trust-based partnerships we're building with local producers across NSW. These are farmers locked out of the major supermarket supply chains — not because their products aren't good enough, but because the system wasn't built for them.
Every farm relationship we develop creates embedded knowledge: seasonal yield patterns, quality consistency, handling requirements, and logistics that compound over time. This isn't a commodity market where any supplier is interchangeable — every farm is unique in its soil, varieties, and practices. A competitor can't replicate these relationships by launching a platform.
For comparable farm-direct products, supermarkets take 26–35% margin — leaving farmers with roughly 65–74 cents per retail dollar. Our farm-direct suppliers retain 75–82 cents of every retail dollar because we take a lower margin and cut the intermediaries. That earns loyalty that locks in supply. When your farmers are earning more and selling consistently, they don't leave.
But the moat isn't only structural — it's emotional. Supermarkets deliberately anonymised food: plastic-wrapped, fluorescent-lit, no story. We reverse that. Every order connects customers to the people behind their food — farm story cards, full traceability, the producer's own brand on the product. For proteins, eggs, and dairy, this matters more than any other category. Customers aren't just buying beef — they're buying trust in how it was raised. That emotional connection drives repeat rates, word-of-mouth, and a willingness to pay a premium that no discount retailer can compete with.
Dramatically lower overhead than traditional retail — and every dollar of savings goes back to customers and producers.
Farmthru is based on the French "Drive" model — Chronodrive pioneered grocery drive-thru collection and now commands 32.7% market share in France. The concept: small-format urban warehouse hubs (3,000–10,000 sq ft) replace expensive retail storefronts. No aisles to staff, no shelf displays to maintain, no prime retail rent.
Customers order online, and their groceries are picked, packed, and ready for a 5-minute drive-thru collection — or local delivery. Within 30 minutes of ordering, groceries are loaded into the customer's car.
Where Costco needs 140,000 sq ft destination stores on city fringes, our compact hubs will sit inside the neighbourhoods where families actually live — what we call the "wealth belts."
This isn't about making people drive to a warehouse. It's about bringing the warehouse to them.
We stock products from local producers — farms that can't access the major supermarket supply chains but produce exceptional products. By keeping supply chains short and cutting out unnecessary layers, we reduce costs while supporting producers who do things properly. Every product on Farmthru comes with its origin story: who made it, where it's from, and why we chose it.
Carton-first pricing gives customers warehouse-level prices on quality products. No membership required — every customer gets the same honest pricing. Our margin comes from shorter supply chains and lower overhead, not from locking people into subscriptions.
No retail theatre means lower overhead. With optimised picking and progressive automation, our hubs target 100–120 units per hour (UPH) at launch — nearly double the 60–80 UPH in traditional supermarkets. AI-driven demand forecasting reduces waste on perishables — the category where shrinkage kills margins.
Every product earns its place through a clear vetting process — "Why It Made the Cut." This isn't about being preachy; it's about giving customers the information the supermarkets don't. What's in it, where it's from, and why it's worth your money.
Our hubs won't feel like warehouses — they'll feel like the point where the farm meets the city. Natural materials, farm photography, and stories from the producers behind every product. Orders arrive with farm story cards — who raised this beef, where the hens roam, what the cows are fed. Customers don't just collect groceries; they collect food with a name, a face, and a story behind it.
AI-native from day one — not bolted onto a legacy system built thirty years ago.
Australia's largest supermarket chains have spent over $2 billion retrofitting automated fulfilment into legacy operations, reporting hundreds of millions in automation savings — from systems that still run on decades-old infrastructure. For incumbents, the biggest barrier is cultural as much as technical: departmental silos and legacy systems slow every decision.
Farmthru has no legacy. We're building every layer of the platform — from order to fulfilment to delivery — on a unified data layer with AI at its core. That means we move faster, waste less, and get smarter with every order.
Perishable waste is the margin killer in grocery. AI-driven demand forecasting reduces fresh food waste by 20–49% industry-wide. We're building a system that predicts demand at the SKU level — adjusting for seasonality, weather, local events, and buying patterns — so we order what sells and waste almost nothing.
Traditional grocery picking averages 60–80 units per hour. With software-optimised batch picking and route planning at launch, we're targeting 100–120 UPH — a 1.5–2x advantage from day one. As we scale, pick-to-light and conveyor systems take us to 200–300 UPH. Because our hubs are designed for automation from day one, each upgrade slots in cleanly — no legacy infrastructure to work around.
Generative AI is transforming how people shop for groceries. We're integrating AI-powered shopping assistants that plan meals, build carts from recipes, filter for dietary needs, and auto-reorder favourites. The same capability major retailers are spending millions to bolt on, we're building natively from day one.
Every transaction will generate data — consumer preferences, seasonal patterns, farm capacity, delivery logistics. This intelligence loop drives better predictions, less waste, better margins, and better prices. Over time, a new entrant starting from zero won't be able to replicate this compounding advantage.
Turning grocery's biggest cost centre into a margin advantage.
The economics of grocery fulfilment are brutal for traditional supermarkets. Home delivery loses them roughly 15% margin. Click-and-collect loses 5%. Farmthru's hub-first model eliminates those losses entirely — no retail rent, no delivery fleet, no last-mile economics problem. Our hubs are purpose-built for collection, with delivery available only as an outsourced option for a minority of orders.
| Metric | Supermarkets | Farmthru |
|---|---|---|
| Home delivery margin | −15% | N/A (pickup-first) |
| Click & collect margin | −5% | Pickup-native (no bolt-on cost) |
| Pick speed | 60–70 UPH | 100–120 UPH (launch), 200–300 target |
| Premises | Prime retail rent | Light industrial ($280–320/sqm vs $800+) |
| Perishable waste | 5–8% industry avg | 3% target (AI-forecasted) |
| Producer share | 65–74 cents per $1 | 75–82 cents per $1 |
Model insight: Our 24.9% product margin is intentionally below Coles/Woolworths (26–27%). The difference goes directly to producers — our farm-direct suppliers retain 75–82 cents per dollar compared to 65–74 cents through traditional supermarket supply chains for equivalent products. This lower margin is viable because our cost base is fundamentally different: light industrial rent, no retail fitout, no checkout staff, and semi-variable picking costs that scale with demand.
Cash position from raise through to recovery — $688K remaining at M24.
Revenue scaling to $31.7M with EBITDA positive from Year 4.
Three forces are converging to create the perfect window.
The ACCC's 2026 crackdown on shrinkflation and greenwashing has put the duopoly under a spotlight. Consumer trust in major supermarkets is at historic lows, creating a massive opening for a transparent, authentic alternative.
Curbside grocery collection has doubled since 2022, with 1 in 8 Australian consumers now choosing this method. The "Drive" model that's standard in France is arriving — and no incumbent owns it here.
High-income households are shifting toward "intentional spending" — they want to know where their food comes from and they're willing to change how they shop to get it. They don't need a health food store. They need a grocer they can trust.
Live since January 2026 — starting where the demand is strongest.
Our pilot is running from a 400sqm Large-format hub in Brookvale, serving Sydney's Northern Beaches — where 41.8% of households earn A$3,000+ per week (median income $2,592/wk vs $1,829 NSW average). These are families who care about what they feed their kids, have the income to act on it, and are frustrated by their current options.
A tight-knit community with strong word-of-mouth dynamics, active local Facebook groups, and a concentration of farmers' market shoppers — the exact audience most likely to trial a new model.
We're leading with relationships, not ad spend. Rachel Ward and Bryan Brown — who run a regenerative farm on the NSW Mid-North Coast — provide immediate brand credibility and media access across publications like Country Living, Gourmet Traveller, and Qantas Magazine.
Community-first: geo-targeted social content around school zones and gyms, partnerships with local voices, and a Founding Customer launch offer with early access and introductory "Try-One" pricing that lets new customers test quality before committing to bulk volume.
A repeatable hub model designed to expand across Australia's wealth belts.
4+ years in food supply chain, warehouse systems, and building relationships with local producers.
Background in technology, eCommerce, and food supply chain. Hands-on builder of the Farmthru platform — from Web/App development and AI-powered customer support to automated supply chain. Bringing a tech-first approach to a category that desperately needs it.
Deep experience in food operations, logistics, and warehouse management. Built and managed supply chains connecting local producers to customers. Focused on operational excellence — the purchasing, quality, and fulfilment that make or break a food business.
Regenerative farmer on the NSW Mid-North Coast and one of Australia's most recognised advocates for sustainable agriculture. Brings immediate brand credibility, national media access, and deep producer networks — connecting Farmthru to the farming community from the inside.
Raising capital for two hub launches and 24-month runway to network breakeven.
24 months of team, operations, and growth — covering the ramp from launch through to network breakeven across two hubs.
Two hubs: Large (400sqm, Brookvale) and Medium (300sqm, expansion site). Includes cool rooms, shelving, IT, and initial inventory.
AI demand forecasting, platform automation, and supplier management tools.
Community launch, geo-targeted campaigns, local partnerships, and founding customer acquisition.
Inventory float and supplier payment buffer — we pay producers on delivery, before customer payments clear.
Reserve for overruns, market shifts, and the inevitable surprises of building something new.
Farmthru is raising its pre-seed round from angels, private investors, and aligned backers who believe Australian families deserve a better grocery option. Leave your details below and we'll be in touch.
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