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 laid 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 after the 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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