Cooking at home brings joy to all.
Nothing like home cooking. For some reason, the food will be prepared at home, can easily compete with the best restaurants in the area - bonus points if they have been cooked for a loved one.
Natalie Lang, co-founder of the grocery delivery service mainly in Singapore, especially like cooking with friends. In fact, she and her co-founder Max Current Tiong are part of a group of friends who meet regularly to weekend interesting recipes found it to play. "We love the experience of cooking together, and the food always seems to taste better when cooked at home," she says.
However, the group is constantly falling into a big problem in the form of endless work commitments:
As busy professionals, we understand what happens when we want to cook something, but pull briskly job everything out the window - it would not have time to dig much less to hunt for recipes for the ingredients. And if we do not get to cook, use only a part of what we buy. So there is always the problem of what to do with the other ingredients, and do not have time to cook every day.
Needless to say, they are not the only ones who are faced with this problem in Singapore. A survey by Robert Half in 2012 revealed that a whopping 98 percent of employees overtime Singapore. To put it in Singlish, where time has to cook food?
Tiong long and decided to do something. "We talked about that day, and we realized that we can help for Singaporeans how to solve this problem to us. Souffle So we came," Long said.
A model of DIY
Meal Delivery startups are now in fashion in the world. Many of them focus on providing maximum comfort for food to cooked and ready to eat send their customers. Field head takes a different approach, one that assumed by the blue apron in the United States and Germany was-based soft-Hi, both recently funded $ 50 million each - that send their customers and ingredients a recipe instead.
The reason: They want to bring the cooking experience and make it fun and want easy to learn. "We do not want to think of the model as a better leader or McDelivery Food Panda Box, offers a different thing," says a lot. "We work primarily for those who are in search of the healthiest foods, and want to learn to cook without the extra effort."
Also carefully ensure the duo that the recipes are to promote a healthier diet. "The alternative to cooking at home these days, meals and grocery delivery service, which are expensive and unhealthy, depending on what you order., If we busy, we begin to make healthy choices more often, what should," she says.
The act of cooking, the process of decision-making in the hands of customers, who can choose to make a healthier choice - less oil and salt, I hope. Long continued, "So it is much easier for people to choose to bring homemade food and fast food delivery, hope to help Singaporeans eat better."
Research and find new and interesting recipes, purchase prefabricated and provides all the necessary ingredients, the computer does all the work on the ground. The site currently offers six recipes that can seem very limited for some customers. However, Long says that the revenue change often.
"We heal our menu and updated weekly, so that with a friendly and healthy recipes that are quick and easy to prepare to offer our customers," he said. And no doubt, so that customers do not get bored quickly offers.
I must admit that these recipes were attractive enough for me, so much that I decided to try the service for me. As a lover of Thai food, Pad Thai Noodles chose the cilantro and shrimp. So far, so tasty.
Here I encountered my first problem. I wanted to order this meal for lunch, but there was one available, and it was for dinner 6 to 7:30 slot. To make matters worse, was the next slot for the following week - orders can not be a week in advance. Much later explained that it will help with the construction of the team, your Shopping List to plan ahead: Customers can place orders from Wednesday to Monday, and then gives the order Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
He added that they are considering extending slots for delivery in the near future:
We respond to those who cook on the same day, and the beginning of the collecting tin for baking later in the week. We are also considering the potential now days delivery greatly expand our delivery.
No choice now, I resigned myself to make next week, and selected.
I received a confirmation e-team about 14 minutes later, and the second problem was - only accept PayPal for payment:
After several failed attempts with my PayPal account, I pulled an e-mail to the team, in the hope of other options. Fortunately, my journey has not ended. The team was kind enough to offer cash on delivery or bank transfer. I opted for COD, and the waiting began.
The reason that the computer PayPal, according to Long, it enables them to meet existing and non-PayPal customers. Infrastructure PayPal also offers the opportunity for settlement, which will be useful if a subscription model for future recovery move.
I was informed a day before the picture would come at 18:50 clock, and voila, Tiong has touched my door at 7 clock sharp. Fortunately, it was because it made another direct shipment - business looks good.
Box with a personalized message in the upper left corner.
Without further ado, I opened the package and was greeted by a recipe and ingredients laid lines:
Almost all ingredients included.
The dry ingredients left, right cooled.
Now the fun part begins! I am proud to be able to grill a good steak, but Thai food is my experience. But the recipe had treated me well with detailed step by step:
Very easy, is not it?
It took about 45 minutes or more to cook a meal for two - the time most young Singaporeans prefer to relax in front of the TV or laptop. Still, I was very proud of the final result:
Two plates of Pad Thai which tasted pretty good if I say myself.
, A fun overall experience. The question that remains is whether Singaporeans have the time and patience to do it on a regular basis.
Waste reduction
One of the main reasons why Singaporeans decide not to prepare your own meals - other than laziness - is wasted on the rest of the ingredients. Since most people do not know when they actually have the time and opportunity to do the kitchen, only a part of the ingredients are bought actually used the rest for the decay of. Refrigerate at the end of the week
Field head solves this premeasured ingredients for the customer's problem to cook a special meal. As mentioned above, the recipe box also contains a card with cooking instructions for more information on how to prepare food. Thus, no waste is created.
By purchasing food in bulk at lower prices and offer our customers what they need, prices, this method allows the team to gain some healthy margin sufficient extent. "More and more people choose to take part in the baking experience, it is more profitable for us, increasing negotiating with our suppliers," says it all. "We have a profit, since we started, and we hope to reduce our costs by increasing demand."
So far the food service in the fourth week of release, and served over 20 customers - want to experience most of them:
Our customers have told us they like what we do, and helped us about your experience the best cuisine. Some even said that they do not try some of the recipes on our menu, if it is not meant for us.
In line with its vision of the cooking experience of more importance, Tiong said they are currently in discussions with charities to increase your cook, we specify the program, ordered the team a meal to donate to someone for each box so lucky.
"We have this service with the intent to cook at home is not only easy and fun, but also a way for us and our customers," he added. "The opportunity to give back to the community is a great motivation for us."
The team is currently focused on developing its reach in Singapore and operations are not yet fully bootstrap. Are you planning to raise money in the near future, but only after fully tightening supply, selection of the recipe and the provider of the negotiation process. Long said:
We believe that investors look at our business from the perspective of the margin. Able to build these processes effectively increased funding opportunities and also allows us to step risk business model. We disclaim Start philosophy very closely, and we are committed to each de-risk the business strategy and the confidence of potential investors before talking to investors.
To be sure, the service would box incredibly useful not discourage quick access to travel and congestion for customers in large countries such as India, where the edible food and retail products. In Singapore, it is more of a luxury than a necessity could be. , In a country that loves its food, the island nation is as good as any place to test the waters.
Lange also assured me that they are considering expansion to other cities in the region such as Sydney, Melbourne and Hong Kong.
"Since we are still young companies that we currently understand to improve our processes, what our customers want and how you focus effectively to reduce costs," he added. And what better place to do the foodies in the nation of Singapore?
Head Box is just one of many new companies, the supply of meals have been created recently in Singapore. Check out our review of cereal, a startup that provides on-demand, ready meals in a taxi near you eat.
(Credit: Flickr Sean Marc Lee)
Edited by Terence Lee
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