ABOUT
Locations: 5
Weekly meals sold: 180’000 (Q4 2020)
Website: Everytable
Founder / CEO: Sam Polok
Investors: Creadev, Kaiser Permanente Ventures
Funding: $16M Series B
Since the beginning of the first shut down order, the restaurant bankruptcy mill has been churning at high speed. After restrictions were lifted the first time, many however were still able to invest the money and effort to reopen their dining rooms and bars. Mere weeks later, when operators had finally gotten the hang of the new normal, the second shut down was fatal. The investment to build up inventory from scratch was too big to recover in the short time restaurants were allowed to be open and many more closures were announced.
But like in every crisis, there are certain business models that are set up to not only survive, but to thrive under these restrictions.
Everytable, a Los Angeles-based startup that prices their healthy meals according to the average income of the communities where they are sold, closed a $16 million Series B round in November 2020 and went from serving 30’000 meals per week before the pandemic to 180’000 meals by the end of 2020.
The company’s next goal is to take on the McDonalds empire by opening as many locations nationwide as the fast food giant while staying true to their credo to serve healthy food at the same cost as a McDonalds meal.
CONCEPT
Everytable is more than a restaurant company. It is a social enterprise that set out to act as an equalizer and a contributor to community health in a society where a big part of the population have no access to healthy and fresh food. In Los Angeles, over 1 million Angelenos experience food insecurities every day and live in what are called “food deserts”. Food deserts are geographic areas in which access to fresh groceries is limited but fast-food locations are plentiful. They are typically found in low-income areas and therefore disproportionately affect minorities. South Los Angeles, for example, is filled with fast-food restaurants (around 400) but has only a few grocery stores.
This is where Evertable comes in: Their unique business model allows them to offer healthy and fresh meals in low income communities for the same price as a McDonalds meal by tailoring the price of a meal to the zip code it is sold in.
The mass production in one centralized kitchen is what has allowed Everytable to grow at such a rapid pace. Meals are produced daily in big quantities and distributed through different small footprint sales channels such as grab and go stores, smart fridges in offices and hospitals as well as through home delivery. This efficient set up has unknowingly provided Everytable with the perfect organization to thrive during lockdown.
Social Equity Franchise
Addressing social inequalities from yet another angle, Everytable has pioneered a franchise program that empowers entrepreneurs from marginalized communities who want to join the fight against food injustice. These franchisees receive the financial support, training, and education they usually wouldn’t have access to, to launch their own Everytable businesses within their community.
TREND
Community & Social Equity
The belief that the long-term growth of a business is strongly tied to the well-being of the community it is anchored in, has made consumers shift their expectations from the government to businesses when it comes to social justice and fairness. Every Angeleno is well aware of the widening gap in wages and the constantly rising real estate prices within their city – as well as the impact this has on the low-income population. Since the expectations of the government to rectify this situation are very low, consumers embrace any company that promises to help even the gap and make living in this city more enjoyable for everyone.
The menu features breakfast and lunch items, healthy drinks such as smoothies and juices as well as desserts.
Each dish has a detailed ingredient and nutrient list, often with indicators of origin and quality of the produce.
Pay it forward
A special “dish” found on the Everytable menu is the “Pay it forward” which can be added to anyone’s order to help pay for meals for those in need.