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ezCater
IndustryCatering
Founded2011
HeadquartersBoston, Massachusetts[1]
Websitewww.ezcater.com

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

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With its online platform, ezCater connects corporate catering orderers and sales representatives with nearby restaurants and caterers.[6][7][3]

It allows companies to review menus from restaurants and then place an order for meetings or company events.[7][8] Restaurants are required to have the appropriate catering menus and web presence to join the platform.[9][6][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.[7][15] Once an order is placed, ezCater tracks it to be sure there are no issues.[13]

History

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In 2011, Mallett and Rodgers raised $2.7 million in Series A investment.[2] Seven years later, in 2018, the company raised $100 million.[3] That funding round was led by Wellington Management Company, with existing investors such as ICONIQ Capital and Insight Venture Partners participating as well.[13][6] This brought ezCater’s total funding to $170 million with a valuation of $700 million.[6][13]

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.[2][9]

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][22]

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]

References

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