EzCater explained

ezCater
Foundation:2011
Location:Boston, Massachusetts[1]
Industry:Catering

ezCater is a Boston-based company that connects businesses with restaurants and caterers through an online marketplace. It was co-founded by Stefania Mallett, CEO, and Briscoe Rodgers, Chief Strategy Officer, in 2007.[2] [3] [4] [5]

Method

With its online platform, ezCater connects corporate catering orderers and sales representatives with nearby restaurants and caterers.[6] [7]

It allows companies to review menus from restaurants and then place an order for meetings or company events.[8] Restaurants are required to have the appropriate catering menus and web presence to join the platform.[9] [10] ezCater has over 75,000 restaurants and caterers signed up on its platform[11] [12] and its catering management software helps caterers manage orders and deliveries.[13] [14]

The website also stores receipts and order histories, and gives companies the ability to let others order food for clients and events with set maximum amounts and tipping policies.[15] Once an order is placed, ezCater tracks it to be sure there are no issues.

History

In 2011, Mallett and Rodgers raised $2.7 million in Series A investment.[2] Seven years later, in 2018, the company raised $100 million. That funding round was led by Wellington Management Company, with existing investors such as ICONIQ Capital and Insight Venture Partners participating as well.[6] This brought ezCater’s total funding to $170 million with a valuation of $700 million.

In 2017, ezCater partnered with JLL to provide meals to Feeding America.[16] [17] [18] They've provided over a million meals to date.[19]

In 2019, ezCater acquired Monkey Group, a cloud platform for take-out, delivery, and catering.[2] [20] That same year, a $150 million Series D-1 funding round saw ezCater reach a $1.25 billion valuation.

In April 2020, as the coronavirus pandemic shuttered corporate offices across the country, ezCater was forced to lay off over 400 staff across its Boston, Denver, Paris, and Vancouver offices.[21]

During the pandemic in 2020, ezCater launched its app and website, Relish by ezCater, which allows workers to place food orders from local restaurants.[22] [23] [24] The individually-packaged meals arrive in a designated space at a designated time to cut down on the number of delivery people entering a business.[25]

In December 2020, ezCater partnered with Subway to offer a new online catering platform.[26] [27]

In July 2021, ezCater launched its first-ever TV commercials, advocating for food as an incentive to motivate remote workers to return to the on-site office environment post-pandemic.[28] [29]

In December 2021, ezCater announced a successful $100M Series D-2 funding round led by SoftBank, raising the company's post-money valuation to $1.6 billion.[30] [31] [32]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Logan . Tim . Another cool new office, this one for business catering company ezCater . Boston Globe . 7 December 2020.
  2. Web site: Online catering marketplace ezCater gets another $150M at a $1.25B valuation . 2020-12-02 . . en-US.
  3. News: Roof . Katie . 2018-06-19 . EzCater Raises $100 Million for Catering . 2020-12-02 . . en-US . 0099-9660.
  4. Web site: Lagorio-Chafkin . Christine . 2019-07-30 . EzCater Launched With an Idea for Feeding Hungry Doctors. Now It's a Billion-Dollar Catering Business . 2020-12-07 . . en.
  5. Web site: Helm . Burt . 2020-10-13 . Stefania Mallet's ezCater Has a System for Everything When It Comes to Feeding a Crowd . 2021-02-04 . . en.
  6. Web site: ezCater raises $100M as it looks to own office-catered meals around the world. 2020-12-02. TechCrunch. en-US.
  7. Web site: ezCater acquires GoCater to expand beyond the US. 2020-12-02. TechCrunch. en-US.
  8. Web site: 2020-12-05. Food Tech News: New Growth Medium for Cultured Meat, Pepsi's Plastic-Free Promise. 2020-12-07. The Spoon. en-US.
  9. Web site: 2019-04-02. Corporate catering marketplace Ezcater raises $150 million at $1.25 billion valuation. 2020-12-02. VentureBeat. en-US.
  10. Web site: 2020-12-04. Subway works with ezCater to build business with businesses. 2020-12-07. www.qsrweb.com. en.
  11. Web site: 2014-11-09. Could ezCater, the Expedia of Business Catering, be the Next Billion Dollar Company?. 2020-12-02. VentureFizz. en.
  12. Web site: ezCater. Angel.
  13. Web site: 2018-06-19. Boston's ezCater raises $100 million to take its corporate catering platform international. 2020-12-02. VentureBeat. en-US.
  14. Web site: PYMNTS. 2019-04-02. ezCater Raises $150M To Scale Business Catering. 2020-12-02. PYMNTS.com. en-US.
  15. Web site: Red Lobster Joins Catering Platform. 2020-12-07. Hospitality Technology. en.
  16. Web site: 2017-11-22. Meet The Mom And Economist Who's Fed 100,000 Children (And Counting)│Professional WOMAN's Magazine. 2020-12-07. Professional Woman’s Magazine The Working Woman’s Magazine. en-US.
  17. Web site: 2017-11-20. Corporate catering initiative has contributed 100,000+ meals to children in need. 2020-12-07. High-Profile Monthly. en-US.
  18. Web site: 19 January 2021. Landlords See Enhanced Food Options as Ingredient for Office Rebound. 2021-02-01. Commercial Observer. en-US.
  19. Web site: 2020-09-17. JLL reaches milestone of providing over 1 million meals* to Feeding America®. 2020-12-07. www.us.jll.com. en-US.
  20. Web site: April 2, 2019. Heather. Lalley. ezCater raises $150M to fuel catering growth. 2020-12-02. Restaurant Business. en.
  21. Web site: ezCater lays off more than 400. Boston Business Journal. en.
  22. Web site: Kathryn Vasel. Food is a big deal at work. Here's how the pandemic will change lunch and snacks. 2020-12-02. CNN. 13 July 2020 .
  23. Web site: 2020-06-25. ezCater Branches into Solo Workplace Meals. 2021-01-27. Food On Demand. en-US.
  24. Web site: 2020-06-19. ezCater Lauches Relish to Reimagine Corporate Lunches. 2021-01-27. The Spoon. en-US.
  25. Web site: 2020-06-19. Online catering marketplace debuts COVID-smart service. 2020-12-02. www.fastcasual.com. en.
  26. Web site: Kaiser. Tom. 2020-12-10. Subway Inks Partnership with ezCater. 2021-02-01. Food On Demand. en-US.
  27. Web site: Subway Taps ezCater for Online Catering Roll Out. 2021-01-27. QSR magazine. 3 December 2020 . en.
  28. Web site: On the rebound, ezCater touts power of food to entice workers back. 2021-07-27. Boston Business Journal. en.
  29. Web site: What will make you go back to the office? Boston catering firm ezCater says free food, not water slides. 2021-07-26. Boston Globe. en.
  30. News: SoftBank to Back EzCater at $1.6 Billion Value in Funding Round. 2021-12-15. Bloomberg. 15 December 2021 . en.
  31. News: VC Daily: EzCater Adapts to Future of Work. 2021-12-15. WSJ. en.
  32. Web site: After Mega-Investment, ezCater Shifts Strategy, Plans IPO. 2022-01-14. Food On Demand. 13 January 2022 . en.

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