Yo-Kai, a developer of vending machines, has received funding from both Japanese companies through a private placement of new shares. The size of the injection and the shareholding ratios have not been disclosed.
Founded in 2016, Yo-Kai now has more than 50 machines in the US, Japan and Taiwan. Through this channel, JT and Chikaranomoto will be able to sell Japanese noodles at home and abroad while keeping labour and other costs down.
Chikaranomoto already sells tonkotsu ramen – noodles in milky-white pork-bone soup – in Japan through vending machines, and the company is preparing to expand this business to the US market. Meanwhile, TableMark, a food product subsidiary of JT, plans to start selling instant noodles through vending machines in Japan this winter, and the group looks to expand offshore as well.
“For them to open a restaurant, you need to have a heavy capital investment,” said Yo-Kai CEO Andy Lin. The partnership with Yo-Kai can quickly grow such operations “to a global scale,” Lin added.
Yo-Kai’s vending machines heat up frozen noodles and serve them ready-to-go in as little as 90 seconds. The startup is in talks with other potential backers with the goal of raising funds for installing more units.
Silicon Valley-based Yo-Kai plans to field 100 vending machines by the end of this fall. The network in the US will expand by approximately 80%. In Japan, the company will add new units at highway rest areas and airports in the Tokyo area.
South Korea, Great Britain and the Netherlands are also targeted for expansion. Yo-Kai will start pilot vending machines in each country in the coming months.
Early next year, Yo-Kai will open frozen noodle factories in the US and Japan that will supply vending machines in each market. Yo-Kai is exploring establishing and operating facilities in Japan in collaboration with Chikaranomoto.
Although Japan’s birthrate is declining, Japanese food is gaining popularity overseas. Against this backdrop, Japanese restaurant operators have searched for greener pastures abroad.
Chikaranomoto first entered the US in 2008 and now operates roughly 280 locations in 15 countries and territories. But not only have labour costs grown in many of these markets, it is difficult to find and train staff to run the restaurants. In too many cases, Japanese restaurants have been unable to realise the results they had anticipated.
Yo-Kai’s vending machines are able to serve noodles that mimic freshly-made dishes. The startup expects that it will provide a practical workaround that will capture offshore demand for Japanese cuisine.
“On the factory side, we want to lower the costs and increase the output,” said Lin. “So, we have designed the automation line to manufacture our products.”