Sunbasket: Case Study, Company Profile, Founding Team, and Many More

Introduction:

A San Francisco-based meal delivery service called Sunbasket was established in 2014 and provides consumers with meal kits and freshly prepared meals for any diet (Paleo, vegan, gluten-free, diabetes-friendly, etc.). Every week, Sunbasket is renowned for delivering wholesome, organic meals to clients’ doors.

Sunbasket was glad to fill the increase in orders when Covid-19 placed a new emphasis on the practicality of meal kits. The meal kit market received a lot of publicity thanks to Covid-19. Sunbasket was happy that we could offer the kinds of meals that people wanted when they couldn’t leave their homes.

Sunbasket Company Highlights:

Company Name	Sunbasket
Headquarter	San Francisco, California, United States
Industry	Food Delivery
Founded	2014
Founder	Chef Justine Kelly, tech entrepreneur Adam Zbar, Tyler MacNiven
Website	https://sunbasket.com/

Sunbasket About:

The weekly delivery of fresh, healthy, and sustainable food and recipes from Sunbasket enables subscribers to prepare their own meals. The business has its main office in San Francisco and two regional distribution locations in Westampton, New Jersey, and Morgan Hill, California. It belongs to the meal kit sector.

Adam Zbar, a serial entrepreneur, had the idea for health-focused eating plans that would include organic and sustainably produced foods shortly after the first meal kit entrepreneurs in America entered the market in 2012. That concept was shared by experienced San Francisco Bay Area chef Justine Kelly, a former Iron Chef America contestant. Adam and Justine started Sunbasket in 2014.

Sunbasket Industry:

The customer experience is everything for Sunbasket, a subscription-based meal delivery service that uses farm-fresh, organic ingredients that are delivered to customers and ready to eat in minutes. Our staff genuinely cares about each and every one of them because we understand how important it is to keep them happy and keep them from canceling their subscriptions or switching to a competing service.

Daniel is in charge of all reporting and analytics for Sunbasket’s customer support division. He collects information, organises it, and makes it understandable for the organization’s leadership and other stakeholders.

Daniel oversees customer service improvement initiatives, administers marketing and promotional mailings, and maintains Sunbasket’s CRM in addition to reporting. He collaborates closely with Kim Torres, the Quality Assurance Lead of Sunbasket.

To promote continuous development throughout the customer service organisation, Kim conducts audits of all new team members’ agents, keeps tabs on problems and trends, and discusses her findings with team leads. Due to the fact that Kim began her work as an agent, she has extensive knowledge of both the agent and manager sides of the role, which enables her to guarantee positive experiences for everyone.

Kim and Daniel use performance metrics and a Quality Assurance (QA) score to assess the effectiveness of the customer service team. These metrics include:

• Agent Satisfaction Rate (ASAT), which indicates how satisfied customers were with an agent’s service;
• The resolution, which indicates whether the customer’s issue was resolved; and 
• Cases per Hour, which indicates how many cases an agent manages per hour.

Sunbasket Founder & Team:

Founders of Sunbasket include Tyler MacNiven, winner of The Amazing Race in 2006, Adam Zbar, George Nachtrieb, Justine Kelly, a San Francisco chef and former chef de cuisine at the Slanted Door, Tyler MacNiven, and Adam Zbar. Kelly, who has been cooking in San Francisco for 25 years, made her appearance on Iron Chef America. A member of its board is the celebrity chef Tyler Florence.

Sunbasket Startup Story:

When it comes to meal delivery services, Sunbasket is the master of all crafts thanks to its extensive range of meal kits, prepared meals, snacks, breakfast items, and pantry essentials. The firm places a strong emphasis on using pure, high-quality ingredients and buys its sustainably raised beef from regional farmers as well as certified organic fruit, eggs, milk, and yoghurt.

It also provides meals for healthy lifestyles, whether they be pescatarian, Mediterranean, gluten-free, or diabetes-friendly. Foodies adore Sunbasket’s quality, abundance of mouthwatering recipes, user-friendly website, and helpful customer service, earning it over 1,500 five-star reviews on Trustpilot.

While fresh & ready meals start at about $10 per serving, meal kits start at $11.49 per serving. When one handful of organic vegetables at the grocery store may cost as much as a meal kit, even though that might not be the cheapest option available, it’s worth the money to buy it.

Sunbasket Mission & Vision:

Our goal is to make you a better cook (and save you time!) by completing the meal planning, shopping, and preparation work for you. We also strive to bring the freshest seasonal ingredients to your table. We have a strong commitment to assisting individual farmers, ranchers, and fishers that provide you with ingredients of the greatest calibre and sustainability.

Sunbasket Name & Logo:

Clean, Sustainable & Always Delicious

Sunbasket Business Model:

We want to give our clients healthier food options using the delivery-based meal subscription model that Sun Basket uses, says Mike Wargocki, VP of Manufacturing at Sun Basket. Whether our consumers follow a Mediterranean diet, a gluten-free or vegan diet, or neither, we come up with innovative, delectable, and nutritious solutions for them.

We like to think of ourselves as the Whole Foods of the meal kit sector because, according to Wargocki, we’re providing a more specialised, upscale, and high-quality service. A staggering variety of dietary needs are covered by Sun Basket’s premium, health-focused solutions, resulting in a very large and highly flexible menu.

Paleo, Carb-Conscious, Gluten-Free, Lean & Clean, Diabetes Friendly, Chef’s Choice, Vegetarian, Pescatarian, Mediterranean, or Quick & Easy meal plans are among the options available to customers. These meals are regularly delivered to tens of thousands of clients as part of a weekly rotating menu created by Chef Kelly and her staff.

The instructions for the customer to create a two or four serve meal, sometimes in as little as 10 to 20 minutes, are included in the cold-packed meal kits when they are delivered. Our primary product is meal kits, but we’ve also introduced Fresh and Ready meals, which are already prepared and only require reheating.

Sunbasket Revenue Model:

• Over nine rounds, Sunbasket raised $138.6 million.
• The most recent round of investment for Sunbasket was a Merger on January 31, 2022.
• In January 2018, Sunbasket was worth $508M.
• The most recent post-money value for Sunbasket is dated January 2022.
• To examine Sunbasket’s valuations in January 2022, May 2017, and more, sign up for a free trial.
• Around 2017, Sunbasket brought in $300M. The most current income for Sunbasket is from that year.
• For access to revenue statistics from 2017 and more, sign up for a free trial.

Sunbasket Products & Services:

The business offers paleo, gluten-free, and vegetarian alternatives among others to consumers who have specific dietary constraints. It is one of the few meal kit businesses that has received USDA Organic Certification. Californian farms provide the ingredients.

Sunbasket Funding & Investors:

Several investors, including PivotNorth Capital, Baseline Ventures, Vulcan Capital Management, Tyler Florence Group, and others helped the business raise $11.62 million in series A fundraising in May 2016. Moreover, the business raised $15 million in series B capital in July.

The business revealed intentions to construct a third distribution facility in July after expanding operations by opening one on the East Coast. When the company launched in 2014, there were 10 employees. By July 2016, there were 400.

A $15 million Series C fundraising round led by Sapphire Ventures and a number of additional investors was disclosed by the company in February 2017. A Series C-2 round led by Unilever Ventures, the venture capital arm of food juggernaut Unilever, was disclosed by the company in May. The money was set aside to broaden its coverage area.

The company announced an expansion with two new distribution sites in the Midwest and East Coast in January 2018 and secured a $57.9 million series D and debt segment fundraising round at the same time. The business inaugurated a 190,000-square-foot distribution hub in New Jersey in March. The business revealed in May that it was collaborating with the American Diabetes Association to offer recipes suitable for people with diabetes.

The company’s meals were certified Heart-Check compliant by the American Heart Association in October. The business revealed in November that it was collaborating with the American Cancer Society to develop meals that adhered to their health standards.

Sunbasket received $30 million in Series E funding in May 2019, which included a contribution from Unilever Ventures. The business stated in August that its distribution centre in St. Louis, Missouri, would be closing.

Sunbasket Employees:

Sun Basket employs 1,404 people.

Sunbasket Challenges Faced:

In 2018, Sunbasket’s business was strong and expanding, and it has so far raised more than $140 million in capital. However, they discovered that part of the track and trace capabilities for each supply chain stage were missing from the national carriers.

Sunbasket was looking for local prices and a shipping platform that used technology. Additionally, they required a shipping partner who could work directly with them as they expanded and was very flexible. Sunbasket needed to decide who their next shipper would be as soon as possible.

However, they had a solution. As its new regional shipping partner in 2018, Sunbasket looked to AxleHire to make up for the lack of technical expertise and acumen that the national carriers provide. Sunbasket and its clients received a more user-friendly tracking system from AxleHire that included personalized SMS texting and real-time updating of delivery instructions.

AxleHire also met Sunbasket’s “flexible” requirement by being able to:

• Real-time order modifications.
• absorb hurried volume without volume limits.
• Up till midnight, accept late injection times.
• Reroute lost product palettes as soon as possible.

Genuine enthusiasm for working with AxleHire was present, and it is still there now. Unlike conventional national and regional carriers, who are limited by their antiquated procedures and infrastructures, they adopt a technology-first strategy.

AxleHire presents Sunbasket with the opportunity to enter new markets. Simeon Arseniev declared, “We’re looking forward to our future with AxleHire. Sunbasket launched into Los Angeles after partnering with AxleHire in 2018 for their delivery service in the San Francisco Bay Area, and it looks forward to additional AxleHire metro expansions.

Despite Sunbasket’s rapid expansion and fluctuating weekly volume, they were able to immediately adapt to any new shipment requirements because to AxleHire’s tech-powered delivery solution. With AxleHire’s special flexibility with more or less daily deliveries, Sunbasket was able to expand their business while maintaining their existing clientele’s satisfaction. Deliveries that are dependable and consistent are now viewed by Sunbasket as a competitive advantage. We’ll establish ourselves as the new standard for the delivery of prepared meals and meal kits, with a focus on providing clients with technology enablement.

In spite of well-known problems in the industry, a difficult road to profitability, and well-publicized failures, venture capitalists continue to invest in meal-kit/food-delivery businesses. Food startups continue to draw investment, as seen by significant financings like DoorDash’s $400 million Series F and GrubMarket’s most recent $25 million deal.

Sunbasket Acquisitions:

Sunbasket and Prüvit Ventures, a producer of keto supplements, merged in a stock-for-stock transaction in December 2021. As a result, Sunbasket and Prüvit became wholly-owned subsidiaries of PSB Holdings, a new holding company.

Sunbasket Growth:

Sun Basket, a company that offers a delivery service for nutritious meal kits, has secured an additional $30 million in venture capital funding. The company has now raised a total of $125 million thanks to the round, which was headed by PivotNorth Capital.

The anticipated initial public offering of Sun Basket is once again postponed by the Series E fundraising. Unfounded reports about a Sun Basket IPO have been going around for a while; in fact, Sun Basket was the target of exit speculations before Blue Apron and Hello Fresh, two rival meal-kit delivery companies, finished their IPOs. Unfortunately, the company won’t be making the big leap for a time.

Considering that Blue Apron went public on the New York Stock Exchange two years ago, its performance has been extremely bad. Sun Basket’s chief executive, Adam Zbar, told PitchBook that his company’s Series D round “was by far the most demanding fundraise” in its history. Zbar has been open about the challenges of leading a meal-kit startup in a world after Blue Apron’s IPO.

The San Francisco-based company Sun Basket was started in 2014 by Webby Award winner Zbar and Michelin-starred chef Justine Kelly. Customers receive fresh, organic, and sustainable products from the business, which distinguishes it from the many meal-kit companies operating in the US. With its most recent cash infusion, it will increase its menu to include breakfast, lunch, and dinner that can be “designed for any lifestyle’

Sunbasket Partners:

Diet ID and Sunbasket recently established a cooperation to offer a comprehensive approach to enhancing health via healthier eating.

Sunbasket Competitors:

Sunbasket’s competitors are :

• Blue Apron.
• Territory.
• Anycart.
• Yumble.
• Home-eat-Home.
• Gousto.
• PlateJoy.

Sunbasket Awards & Achievements:

There is no data of it.

Sunbasket Future Plan:

The company established a goal to generate zero-waste packaging and created recyclable insulating liners utilising recyclable PET fibre, ice packs made from GMO cotton and water, and totally biodegradable ingredient bags in response to industry concerns about the wasteful packaging in meal kits.

Sunbasket will keep providing customers with tasty, practical food alternatives for any time of day, including meal kits, ready-to-heat meals, and pantry products, while also accommodating a variety of dietary preferences and health needs.

Fresh & Ready meals, which were introduced last year, may be ready in as little as six minutes and require no preparation. The Sunbasket Marketplace offers meals from partner brands that uphold the Sunbasket brand’s core principles as well as snacks, breakfast items, and pantry essentials. For individuals who like chopping, slicing, and portioning out their own meals, Sunbasket will keep providing traditional meal kits.

FAQs about Sunbasket:

What does Sunbasket do?

Sun Basket is a pre-measured recipe subscription service available online. Customers have the choice of choosing their meals for the week or enrolling in a menu plan, which includes paleo, gluten-free, and vegetarian alternatives. According to the firm, dishes can be prepared in 30 minutes or less, and pre-measured ingredients make cooking even simpler. Android and iOS users can download the mobile app.

When was Sunbasket founded?

It was established in 2014.

Who is the founder of Sunbasket Corporation?

Chef Justine Kelly, tech entrepreneur Adam Zbar, and Tyler MacNiven are the founders.

Who is the CEO of Sunbasket Corporation?

The CEO is Adam Zbar.

Who are the main competitors of Sunbasket?

Sunbasket’s competitors are –

• Blue Apron.
• Territory.
• Anycart.
• Yumble.
• Home-eat-Home.
• Gousto.
• PlateJoy.

How long can Sunbasket sit out?

Generally speaking, you want to enjoy your Sunbasket meals within 3-5 days after receiving them, but refrigerating and storing them properly will go a long way in keeping them as fresh as possible.

How often does Sunbasket change their menu?

Sunbasket will tailor your weekly menu to a specific diet or nutrition plan that you might be following. Next, you’ll select a diet or eating plan if it applies (plant-based, gluten-free, pescetarian) so Sunbasket can filter out any meals that don’t adhere but you can still order from the full menu each week.

What is the Sunbasket controversy?

Sun Basket, the third largest online meal kit company in the U.S., faced a complaint last year that it included non-organic items in meals marketed as organic, reported BuzzFeed News.

Is Sunbasket food healthy?

Are Sunbasket meals healthy? Sunbasket meals feature an array of fresh, seasonal, and nutrient-dense ingredients, including many varieties of vegetables, whole grains, and proteins. Most meals are also nutritionally balanced, with a good amount of protein, fat, fiber, and carbohydrates in each serving.

How long do Sunbasket meals take to cook?

Made with incredibly fresh seasonal ingredients, most recipes are ready in 30 minutes or less. Fresh & Ready Meals (Serve 1): We’ve done the cooking for you. Prepared meals delivered in a microwave- and oven-ready tray. Simply heat and they’re ready to eat in as little as 4 minutes.

Conclusion:

Meal kit sales increased after the epidemic as customers started eating all of their meals at home. By that time, Sunbasket had debuted new menu plans oriented on health, including options that were diabetes- and heart-friendly and created in collaboration with the top specialists in the country.

Sunbasket’s revenues have nearly doubled by May 2020. Following client preferences as they shifted away from the cook-by-the-numbers approach and toward more prepared meals in August of that year, the company created a ready-to-heat line.