Startups digitising cafeterias with latest technologies

Mumbai: Restaurants and other F&B businesses have undergone a massive digitaltransformation that has catapulted the food-tech industry forward. For instance, when you are working at your desk, burdened with a fullday of tasks, writing codes for a specific programme, orcross-checking an excel sheet, and all of a sudden, you feel hungry or need a caffeine fix or a refreshing drink, you tend to glance at your watch, quickly calculating the time you can spare for a short break.

But, isn't it wonderful when you can simply order from your phone without the hassle of going up to an outlet? Fitness and a healthy lifestyle are at the top of the priority list for people after the pandemic. The existence of a digital cafeteria along with a variety of healthy eating options precludes employees from placing meal orders from anywhere and everywhere, walking down the street and eating at any restaurant, waiting in long lines to collect their orders, or engaging in any form of cash transactions when cashless ones are so much convenient.

This Bengaluru-based food-tech firm, HungerBox, with a nationwide presence takes the cafeteria experience to a new level, making it enjoyable and convenient cafe users. Founded in 2016 by industry veterans Sandipan Mitra and Uttam Kumar, HungerBox manages the end-to-end F&B requirements of nearly 160 institutions in the technology, financial services, education, manufacturing, and healthcare sectors. Eight of the top 10 largest private-sector employers in India, leading automobile manufacturers, hospitals, universities, tech parks, and multiplexes are among HungerBox's clients.

The platform leverages AI and ML algorithms and data analytics to elevate the experience offered to employees, works with over 1520 food partners and manages 565 cafeterias across the country. HungerBox has raised $16.5 million in Series D funding from investors, includingPaytm, Sabre Partners, Lionrock Capital, Neoplux, NPTK and KrisGopalakrishnan, Co-Founder of Infosys.

Talking to Bizz Buzz, Sandipan Mitra, Founder, Hunger Box, says, "Digital cafeterias have created experiences that form a crucial partof our professional lives. Digital cafeterias which delivered on their promise of a safe and tech-led environment were not only a necessity amid the pandemic, but also a comfort space employee could use tospend time when they needed a quick break from work." Bonding over food is a something that we all look forward to. Digital cafeterias have played an instrumental role in facilitating a healthy, positive ambience in engaging employees and giving them an excellent opportunity to continue to do the things they enjoy, he said.

The company have come up with solutions for a digital contactless cafeteria where it is not only the need of the hour but also a win-winsituation for both employees and employers, both! The Compass group company (A product based MNC), started its operations in Bengaluru in June 2015, and is a leading B2B food-tech service provider that works on an aggregation model leveraging cutting-edge technology and strong vendor management capabilities to enrich the lives of employees at theworkplace. SmartQ was acquired by Compass Group in 2020. Compass is the world's largest food services company having its presence in over 70 countries. Currently, SmartQ is present in nine countries with more than160 clients. SmartQs Digital cafeteria solution transforms any conventional cafeteria into one that is completely digital and cashless.

A physical marketplace for home chefs, cloud kitchens, and D2C brands enabling them to sell their products through IoT-based smart vending machines. Daalchini provides snacks, beverages, home-cooked food, healthy bars, fruits, etc. The group brings your comfort Indian food to offices, apartments, colleges through our self-operated kiosk called Daalchini Hut. Their kiosks provide healthy Indian breakfast and evening snacks options as well as variety of ready-to-eat Indian whole-wheat breads (chappatis, paranthas), anytime, anywhere.

A one-stop solution for corporate cafeterias and food courts solve multiple problems for different stakeholder, they provide an end-to-end tech product which manages the entire cycle. Problems they solve - cafeteria management: track the entire F&B operation and food consumption, orders, feedback, in real-time.

Tappit is building for scale, they foresee the real and critical problem faced by vendors, cafeteria managers, IT human resources, and especially employees and they are on the pathway to create a sustainable and improved product that helps improve and enrich their lives.