This is a company unlike any other in the Washington DMV – and that’s saying a lot. HUNGRY Marketplace has revolutionized the office food market nationally. Founded by visionary entrepreneurs Jeff Grass and Eman and Shy Pahlevani, this Arlington, Virginia-based company is reshaping the landscape of office food solutions with food made by top local chefs and restaurants along with a unique blend of passion, creativity, and technological innovation.
“Our goal is to make people happy, and when we provide really great food, deliver it on time, and provide excellent service, everyone is happy – every single time.”
The Genesis of Innovation
“We began as a tech-enabled platform for office and event catering, connecting clients to incredible local chef entrepreneurs,” says Jeff about HUNGRY’s mission. “Since 2017, we’ve rapidly grown into a national platform, including business and event catering, office snack and pantry solutions, and last-mile food delivery services.” Today, HUNGRY operates in 13 major U.S. cities, employs over 200 team members, and partners with over 750 top local chefs and restaurants.
Revolutionizing the Food Industry
What sets HUNGRY apart is its innovative business model. “We work primarily with great local chefs who cook out of shared or ghost kitchens. It enables us to provide super high-quality food at great price points, and it allows us to own the delivery and service side too, which is a real game changer,” explains Jeff. With this approach, HUNGRY clients enjoy ultra-reliability and a VIP level of service. “Our goal is to make people happy, and when we provide really great food, deliver it on time, and provide excellent service, everyone is happy – every single time,” he adds.
HUNGRY is also a company that is committed to making a difference. “HUNGRY is a purpose-driven company dedicated to improving the lives of everyone we touch: we strive to improve the lives of chefs who are our partners, the clients we serve, the community where we operate, and our amazing team members,” Jeff elucidates.
For chefs, HUNGRY provides an alternative career path. It enables them to start a business with no money down, earn more than a typical chef working in a restaurant can, help them build a brand, and give them a more flexible lifestyle.
HUNGRY strives to improve environmental sustainability in its operations by using only catering materials that are compostable and biodegradable or recyclable and reusable materials. It has partnered with German non-profit Click-a-Tree to enable clients to offset carbon emissions generated by its catering deliveries. The company has already funded a 2,000-mangrove tree-planting initiative called the HUNGRY Forest.
Jeff and his team are also active in the fight against hunger through team-based community services and donating one meal in the communities where it operates for every two clients purchase.
Moreover, diversity and inclusion are front and center in all aspects of its business. “We celebrate our differences and believe strongly that diverse teams achieve far more,” asserts Jeff.
Adapting and Thriving Amid Challenges
When the pandemic struck, HUNGRY lost 95% of its sales. “It was a character-defining moment for the company. COVID was one of the gut-check moments where the company faced disaster, and people could easily have walked away,” recounts Jeff.
“Our team didn’t give up, though: we pivoted and launched several new service lines that helped carry us through the pandemic – and tripled our business in the process. We had team members doing superhuman feats, including pulling all-nighters to launch new business lines – every aspect of the company rose to the occasion. Seeing everybody pull together despite the situation’s challenges was amazing. Pre-COVID, we invested heavily in our culture and environment, and we have nine core values that we very much live by. That’s the secret sauce to our survival, sustainability, and success.”
HUNGRY’s IT: Innovation and Technology
What does innovation mean to a company like HUNGRY? Jeff declares: “Innovation means understanding a customer or client’s needs and wants, and building something that effectively solves those needs and wants. We aim to be very customer-led in everything we do, to understand what solutions they need and want that would add value, and then keep improving and on delivering on those.”
HUNGRY has invested over 100,000 hours of development time into creating its proprietary food tech platform and logistics system. Says Jeff: “Through a heavy investment in technology, the business can run in a very reliable, scalable, and cost-efficient way. Without our tech, we couldn’t unlock this unique business model that gives us significant structural advantages around pricing and costs, reliability, service, variety, and quality.”
Future Growth
As the office food market evolves, HUNGRY is well-positioned to lead the charge. It has innovated to remain relevant, effective, and it now fits today’s needs better than yesterday’s, from new business lines to all-new group order technology to driving social and cultural mindset shifts within companies. Jeff expresses: “Companies are increasingly asking how to bring people together and how to ensure they can have a shared meal and enhance culture and communication. These are all much more valuable than pre-pandemic.”
Cultivating a Culture of Innovation
“The company has been blessed to have many local investors support HUNGRY since the early days,” shares Jeff. Three of their largest investors are all DC-area based: Sands Capital Ventures, RGH Capital, and Motley Fool Ventures. Celebrity investors like Jay-Z (via Marcy Venture Partners), Usher, and Kevin Hart have also invested in HUNGRY. However, the support from investors in the DMV has been vital to their success.
As HUNGRY continues to redefine the office food landscape, its impact extends beyond mere business success. Jeff’s vision has cultivated a unique ecosystem where chefs, clients, and communities thrive together. Through its innovative approach, commitment to sustainability, and community-centric ethos, HUNGRY stands not just as a company but as a symbol of hope, resilience, and unity in the ever-evolving tapestry of the DMV’s dynamic business world.
