Issue #103 – OnTrend Concepts

July 28, 2022

Peter Cook, Editor

I thought we were due for a slow news week in the ghost kitchen space. Not so. Big announcements from Kitchen United, Virtual Dining Concepts, Ghost Kitchen Brands, and REEF in North America, and big news from Just Kitchen, 7-Eleven, VRO Hospitality, and Cuyna elsewhere. On top of that, we have several good articles included this week!

Make sure you stay up to speed on the industry through this digest, the Ghost Kitchen Group on LinkedIn and our in-person events.

OnTrend Concepts is building relationships with delivery kitchen, delivery, and foodtech leaders around the world. Right now we have trips planned for later this year to London, Amsterdam, Madrid, and Dubai. Let us know if you are in any of those locations (or have colleagues there) and would like to meet. We’d be happy to do so!

And now, the news…

Kitchen United raises $100M Series C

New investors include strategics such as Alimentation Couche Tarde and its subsidiary Circle K, Kroger and Burger King parent Restaurant Brands International.

Kitchen United is planning on coming to gas stations, shopping malls

With the ghost kitchen company’s latest round of funding, it’s clear that its ambitions extend far beyond restaurants

Virtual Dining Concepts courts Gen Z with FaZe Clan virtual brand for gamers

Virtual Dining Concepts is launching FaZe Subs in partnership with the Faze Clan esports organization and DoorDash.

REEF at the Raleigh Airport: Nine new restaurants, one kitchen and no tables or chairs

The getREEF Virtual Food Hall in Terminal 2 offers food and drinks from nine local and national brand-name eateries, all prepared in a single kitchen.

Pierogi House Partners with Ghost Kitchen Brands to Expand Handmade Pierogies into Delivery across Ontario

Ghost Kitchen Brands, which operates locations across Canada and the US, has partnered with local favourite, Pierogi House, to offer handmade pierogies to more Ontarians.

After Layoffs, Nextbite’s New Co-President Denny Post Digs In

In an interview, the former president and CEO of Red Robin who steered development of KFC’s Popcorn Chicken, Burger King’s Chicken Fries and Starbucks’ Pikes Place Roast, says her next big innovation is coming via virtual restaurants—and she’s excited to dig in.

Texas Restaurant Giant Creates Runaway Quick-Service Hit Roosters Run

Willie's Grill & Icehouse Launches Successful Virtual Brand Specializing in Delivery-only Chicken Menu.

Houston Vietnamese restaurant hustles its way to $1 million prize

A Houston Vietnamese ghost kitchen and drive-thru restaurant just got a $1 million boost to help grow its brand.

The Future of Ghost Kitchens: Efficiency, growth, expansion?

This two-part blog series breaks down the types of ghost kitchens, the future of ghost kitchens, and the importance of optimizing and marketing your virtual brand to boost your bottom line.

Marketing for ghost kitchens

KitchenHub Co-Founder outlines ten strategies for ghost kitchen marketing.

Great cloud kitchens need a mix of artists and engineers

Zorawar says a great cloud kitchen requires you to be “an artist and an engineer.” An artist to create food that goes with a cloud model. And an engineer, because the model just doesn’t work without technology.

Five Things Restaurateurs Need To Consider Before Venturing Into The Metaverse And Web 3.0

As always, restaurants need to meet consumers where they are and where they want to go, so they should be watching this space and preparing a plan.

Checking in on the State of the Restaurant Consumer

How has guest behavior changed throughout the pandemic? It’s an ever-evolving debate.

Opinion: Shining Light on Dark Kitchens

The resilience of the hospitality industry in adapting to changing consumer behaviours has been evident for some years. Similarly, many predict that dark kitchens will only grow in popularity, as the population adapts to the new normal and retains the habit of ordering in.

Ghost Kitchens 101: Expanding Restaurant Brands with Delivery-only Haunts

Normally we skip the “What is a Ghost Kitchen” articles for this Digest (our subscribers are already up to speed). However, we thought this one was particularly good, so we included it!

Food delivery share prices could ‘meaningfully recover’ next year as firms approach profitability

While food delivery stocks have experienced turbulence lately, the Royal Bank of Canada said there was potential for shares to “meaningfully recover” as start-ups approach profitability.

Drones take to the Skye and deliver frozen foods to cloud kitchens

Skye Air Mobility, a drone delivery service, on Monday announced that it has teamed up with Curefoods to use drones to deliver temperature-controlled boxes of frozen food to cloud kitchens.

Podcast: How Restaurant Digitalization is Transforming the Customer Experience?

FutureFoodCast talks with Jeremy Terman from Lunchbox.

Podcast: Ghost Kitchen Growth and Food Delivery's Future

Choppin’ It Up Podcast talks with Atul Sood from Kitchen United.

India: Zomato Vs Swiggy: Will M&A Spree Solve Profit Puzzle For Food Delivery Giants?

Zomato and Swiggy have more or less gone in a similar direction, but their experiments to grow revenue through acquisitions have come at a steep cost over the past two years.

India: VRO Hospitality Expands 28 New Outlets With Its 7 Popular Brands

VRO Hospitality is all set to acquire 90,000 square feet of real estate as it expands nationally with new footprints in Bengaluru, Mumbai, Goa, Ooty, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Kochi.

India: How the pandemic fast-tracked F&B’s transition to digital

The pandemic provided the ideal opportunity to make the transition from physical to digital, and ensure that there indeed is a future worth celebrating. Certainly, in the HORECA industry, it caused a ‘tech-tonic’ shift.

Taiwan: 7-ELEVEN Taiwan partnering with cloud kitchen company, Just Kitchen to promote a hot food series

The unique partnership provides consumers with hot bento offers for "self-pick-up service" providing a convenient and safe food hot food to go platform.

Spain: Three Spaniards involved in the food delivery sector founded Cuyna

They now have 55 specially designed kitchens across Spain which even include space for delivery personnel and are looking to not only increase the number of outlets in Spain but also to expand to Italy and Portugal.

Our newsletters are a collection of all the news from the previous week related to each digest topic. The focus is on trends, deal announcements, technology, and other industry disruptors and innovations.

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