Bringing Humanity Back to the Gig Economy

At dumpling, everything is personal. We are committed to empowering people in an industry where humans — not machines or algorithms — are best equipped to do the job. We believe that when empowered people have the right tools, the customer wins. We built a platform for individuals to run their own personal grocery delivery businesses, enabling them to deliver the most customized and personalized service for their customers.

Why make it personal? Over the years, it’s become clear to us that the gig economy has been built at the expense of — not for — millions of independent contractors, who need to relentlessly hustle to meet the demands of smartphones and computer algorithms. It’s a system that encourages anonymity, turning humans into numbers, and removing the ability for them to make real-time decisions on behalf of their customers. This system simply doesn’t work when it comes to services that are dependent upon personalization and human connection, like grocery shopping.

We’re here to change that. Our ownership model empowers Gig Workers to run their own delivery businesses, giving them the ability to build personal relationships with their customers. And it works! By empowering business owners to shop for their customers just as they would for their own family, dumpling orders are two to three times larger than leading delivery platforms. This means small business owners on dumpling are earning three times as much per hour than they did when working for other on-demand delivery apps. However, dumpling can’t take the credit for the larger orders and more substantial paychecks. The business owners themselves are why the ownership model works. They are able to operate locally and build relationships with repeat clients in a way that no computer algorithm can.

We are excited to announce that we’ve raised $3 million to continue our mission to empower business owners and help them better serve their customers. We are partnering with a like-minded group of investors, including Floodgate and FUEL Capital. While we are just 18 months into this journey, these investors will help us take the company to the next level given their experience building people-first technology platforms, such as TaskRabbit.

So, what does $3 million in funding mean for dumpling? It will greatly accelerate our mission with an improved dumpling platform for shoppers and customers, serving more local stores and allowing us to quickly expand into new geographies across the US. We will also focus on building out our team and increasing our service offerings in other verticals where personalization matters.

Interested in building your own business on the dumpling platform? Become a dumpling business owner now.

Looking for an awesome and attentive personal shopper? Find a Shopper Near You!