// STARTUP COMPARISON
Frubana vs Convoy
Frubana failed in 2023 due to Unit Economics. Convoy failed in 2023 due to Bad Timing. Different causes, different sectors, different eras — but the same simulation outcome.
| METRIC | 🔥 Frubana | 🔥 Convoy |
|---|---|---|
| Sector | Marketplace | Marketplace |
| Country | Colombia | USA |
| Founded | 2018 | 2015 |
| Died | 2023 | 2023 |
| Raised | $186M | $1B |
| Peak | $186M raised | $3.8B valuation |
| Primary Cause | Unit Economics | Bad Timing |
// WHY EACH FAILED
🔥 Frubana
Unit Economics
Frubana built a B2B marketplace connecting restaurants with fresh produce suppliers across Colombia, Brazil, and Mexico. After raising $186M, the company struggled with the perishability economics of fresh produce — spoilage rates, last-mile cold chain costs, and the fragmented supplier base made unit economics unsolvable at the ticket sizes restaurants order. Frubana shut down in 2023.
// LESSON
Fresh produce supply chains have physics problems that capital cannot solve. Spoilage is a function of time and density. If you can't achieve minimum order density per zone before your runway runs out, the unit economics never improve.
Fresh produce supply chains have physics problems that capital cannot solve. Spoilage is a function of time and density. If you can't achieve minimum order density per zone before your runway runs out, the unit economics never improve.
🔥 Convoy
Bad Timing
Convoy built a digital freight brokerage connecting shippers with truckers. After raising $1B and reaching a $3.8B valuation, the freight market collapsed in 2022-2023 as post-COVID supply chain normalization and economic slowdown reduced shipping demand sharply. Spot freight rates fell 50%+. Convoy's take-rate model required volume that the market could not provide. The company shut down in October 2023.
// LESSON
Digital freight marketplaces have revenue directly tied to freight market cycles. The technology doesn't create volume — it competes for existing volume. In a freight recession, the best technology in the world generates half the revenue at half the volume.
Digital freight marketplaces have revenue directly tied to freight market cycles. The technology doesn't create volume — it competes for existing volume. In a freight recession, the best technology in the world generates half the revenue at half the volume.
// EXPLORE FURTHER