Weee!

August 19 2020

If you live on the west coast, you might already be very familiar with Weee! But if you start to see the delivery of Weee! popping up in major east coast hubs such as NYC, now you know why. The Asian e-grocer is growing very fast and expanding its national footprint. It is now the largest online Asian delivery platform with more than 5 million users and offers next day shipping.

Online grocery is a capital-intensive business with thin profit margins, so it’s unsurprising to see many contenders — in both China and the U.S. — operating in the red. Against the odds, Weee! turned profitable earlier this year and also went cash-flow positive.

Since the U.S. began reversing lockdowns and people started to return to supermarkets, some grocery delivery services have seen their revenue growth slow. Weee!, however, is currently growing and is at 15-20% more in sales than its March peak. CEO Larry Liu explained that the sustained boom stems from the service’s product differentiation: Asian specialties that one can’t even find in Chinatowns around the US.

In addition, Weee! tries to streamline every step of its operations, from product procurement, warehouse management, and staff allocation to door-to-door delivery. The result is zero food waste thanks to fast inventory turnover.

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