Is there anything that women can’t do? From leading space missions to building leading businesses, women are excelling in every walk of life and are truly unstoppable. One such story is of Rashmi Daga, the founder of the food startup, FreshMenu. The brand has had its fair share of ups and downs and has come back stronger than ever.
Rashmi Daga through her LinkedIn said how she has always been fascinated by the idea of start-ups, the thrill of being associated with something that is one’s own, and the challenges that come with it is what keeps her going. After completing her Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering from Delhi School of Engineering she received a Diploma from IIM Ahmedabad. During her time at IIM she was also associated with a number of clubs and participated in a number of college events.
Before starting her own venture, Rashmi worked in some of the leading companies. In 2003, she joined IBM as the Business Manager, followed by being the Regional Sales Executive at Johnson & Johnson where she led a team and was responsible for managing the entire state of Rajasthan, Gurgaon, and a portion of Delhi. After being an employee for more than 10 years, Rashmi finally decided to start something of her own, and that led to the birth of her startup, FreshMenu.
Founded in 2014, Freshmenu is one of the earlier food delivery start-ups that adopted the cloud kitchen model in India. The start-up began doorstep food delivery at a time when the service was still very new to internet consumers in the country. Zomato, which was founded in 2010, did not get into food delivery until mid-2015, while Swiggy was founded only in August 2014.
“When we say good, we don’t just mean good food. We also mean the goodness that good food leads to. Good memories, a good temper, a good day, a good burp. And we know that when our food leaves our kitchens, we’re creating all that. It’s rewarding, this belief in good. Now take a look at how we go about it.” The brand’s aim.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, the startup faced its fair share of lows and after the world started opening up, FreshMenu also geared up for a fresh start. From heavy losses to employee layoffs, the entire food tech industry was somehow held by a string.
FreshMenu raised Rs 50 crore (about $6.4 million) headed by Florintree Advisors. The funds were used to expand their kitchen footprint as well as to launch new brands.
As per a previous discussion between Rashmi and The Financial Express, the founder and CEO stated that with an average order volume (AOV) of Rs 350, Freshmenu processes over 8,000 orders every day across four cities(at that time) : Bengaluru, Delhi, Gurgaon, and Mumbai. The startup earns about 85% of its revenue through meal delivery aggregators like Swiggy and Zomato, with the remaining 15% coming from its own direct-to-consumer service.
With a menu ranging from exotic, filling bowls to desserts to finish it up, FreshMenu has it all. They even offer a changing menu, ‘We also like to keep you guessing. Cliff-hangers, that’s what we believe in. But here’s a spoiler. The menu changes, the goodness doesn’t.’
As promised by Daga the company has launched new labels based on plant protein, grain bowls, barbeque and grill platters, seasonal fruits and vegetable-based collections, and Zero sugar sweets. And meals from all over the world- West Asian cuisines such as Moroccan, Egyptian, and Lebanese.
Rashmi Daga’s comeback has been stronger that ever and has taken the startup to greater heights.
