Gourmet food delivery service CoLab has collapsed into voluntary administration after failing to gain financing to continue operating.
The start-up launched in August 2022 and offered ready-made meals, drinks, pantry stables and produce from restaurants, cafes and bars including gourmet options.
The company delivered to homes across Australia.
Co-founder and CEO Josh Abulafia posted to LinkedIn the news the business had entered voluntary administration.
”It’s been a tough day for CoLab and unfortunately we have had to let the team go,” he posted.
“As a quick background we (were) in the process of closing out a new round of financing that fell through.
“We then had significant interest for the company to be acquired and decided to put the company into VA to help, but due to unforeseen events our timelines became truncated.”
Morgan Kelly and David Kennedy of Ernst and Young have been appointed as administrators.
“The Administrators have assumed control of the Group’s affairs and have taken possession of its assets,” the administrators said at the end of March.
“This includes seeking proposals for an urgent recapitalisation of the Group or the purchase of the Group’s business and assets.
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“At this stage, the Administrators intend to continue to trade the Group on a ‘business as usual’ basis.”
Abulafia praised the start-up’s team to help get the business to “profitability on the first order including customer acquisition cost”.
“Our retention also improved materially. We also (were) able to move quickly on launching (a) new B2B business line that looked like we could hit profitability by end of year at a company level,” he said.
Abulafia said the company would help to find new jobs for all the staff.
“None of this is to do with us it is the collective achievement of the whole team. I can hand on heart say that you would be lucky to work with any of these people,” he said.
The ultra-fast delivery service employed 400 staff all of whom have been made redundant.
Founder Dany Milham said in an email to staff, seen by the Australian Financial Review, the company has a “sufficient cash balance” to pay staff and suppliers out in full.
“We’ve always been committed to doing things the right way, and winding down the business while we still have a sufficient cash balance enables us to ensure our people and suppliers are paid in full,” Milham’s email read.
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