Hello Fresh (www.hellofresh.co.uk), a revolutionary new grocery delivery service, has been announced as the HP Smart Business of the Year 2012.
At the awards ceremony, in its inaugural year, UK companies were recognised for their achievements in one of six different sub- categories, with Hello Fresh receiving the overall award. The company impressed judges with its fast growth, strong following and innovative product offering that has tapped into a lucrative and engaged market.
Launched just five months ago, Hello Fresh has already transformed ingrained UK consumer buying patterns by offering individuals a totally new way of shopping. The service radically challenges the supermarket model by cutting out the ‘middle-man’ to supply better-quality produce, delivered in the exact quantities required to cook the healthy recipes provided.
Following its initial success in London, the company has since established itself as a nationwide service. The company’s goal is to encourage Britons to rediscover the joy of cooking with fresh ingredients in a simple and convenient way.
The company was founded by Pit Karbe, Managing Director, and Operations Director, Min Kim. The pair head up a team of former city professionals that are passionate about food and eager to change the status quo.
Upon winning the award, Pit described his pride at having come so far in the short time since January: “I am delighted that Hello Fresh has already been recognised as a ground-breaking new business concept. Most importantly, it reflects the impact we are already having on the lives of our customers.”
Before embarking on this venture, Pit worked as an investment banker for Morgan Stanley and Lord Rothschild’s RIT Capital Partners. Pit comments: “As a busy city professional I never had the time to plan meals and shop for groceries even though I love home-cooked food. As a result I often found myself eating convenience meals that I didn’t enjoy at all. There had to be a better way.
“We believe that more people would enjoy cooking fresh meals at home, if only it was easier. Cooking shows on TV are enormously popular but it takes so much effort to actually buy all the necessary ingredients, many of which aren’t even stocked in supermarkets. We make it very easy for our customers to discover delicious food in their own homes by doing all the hard work for them.
“We want Hello Fresh to revolutionise the way people eat at home, in much the same way that supermarkets radically changed the landscape of grocery shopping when they took the place of independent, specialist stores. We understand that consumers are weary of the impersonal experience and low quality of chain stores, and we provide an entirely new way to shop and cook.”
About the HP Smart Business Awards 2012
HP launched its first Smart Business Awards in 2012 as part of its commitment to support small and mid-sized business innovation and growth across the UK. Businesses were invited to enter the awards to be recognised for their achievements in one of six different categories, including the overall HP Smart Business of the Year 2012.
The annual awards will celebrate the best achievements of the UK’s small and medium sized businesses. Each category recognises a different area of business, shining the spotlight on some of the country’s most dynamic and hardworking businesses, whatever sector they may be in.
HP distributed awards in the following categories – Social Media, Use of Mobile, Community Support, Manufacturing Innovation, Green and Next Generation.
HP is continually supporting emerging companies through its SMEngage program announced in early 2012 and the LinkedIn Business Answers group where HP is committed to developing and maintaining a small business community that can learn from one another and collaborate to further grow their businesses.
The judging panel included:
- Susan Bowen, HP SME Expert
- Emma Jones, Enterprise Nation
- John Mark Williams, Head, Breakthrough Programme at Santander
- Rebecca Shears, Head of Marketing at HP
- Will Koch, Category Head Tech and Telco in EMEA at LinkedIn
- Iain Bristow, Country Marketing & PR Manager, UK&I at AMD
HP creates new possibilities for technology to have a meaningful impact on people, businesses, governments and society. The world’s largest technology company, HP brings together a portfolio that spans printing, personal computing, software, services and IT infrastructure at the convergence of the cloud and connectivity, creating seamless, secure, context-aware experiences for a connected world. More information about HP is available at http://www.hp.com
About Hello Fresh
Hello Fresh (www.hellofresh.co.uk) is a revolutionary new grocery delivery service that aims to change the way Britons eat by providing an entirely new shopping and cooking experience.
Every week Hello Fresh customers receive interesting recipes and all the ingredients in the exact quantities, delivered directly to their homes. The service promises to put an end to stressful supermarket dashes and makes it easy to enjoy the experience of cooking and discovering delicious food.
Each delivery contains simple step-by-step photo recipes from experienced chefs, designed so that even the most kitchen-phobic of users can create a restaurant-standard dish within 30 minutes.
Hello Fresh eliminates all the time-consuming aspects of cooking, from weighing of ingredients to sourcing of unusual foodstuffs – such as star anise, purple potatoes or a single pinch of Pink Himalayan Salt, which can be hard to find. Hello Fresh customers cook nutritionally balanced meals, with no food wastage, while discovering new and exciting ingredients.
With Hello Fresh no more time will be wasted trawling supermarket aisles, trying to pre-plan meals for the days ahead, with the inevitable second visit when a vital ingredient has been forgotten. And by sourcing directly from the UK’s leading food suppliers, Hello Fresh ensures that their produce is fresher and tastes better than the standard supermarket fare.
If you’re a keen cook, preparing Hello Fresh meals will add more delicious dishes to your repertoire, and if you’re a novice in the kitchen, the easy-to-follow recipes will help you to learn the basics quickly.
A three-meal plan for two costs £39 per week, £59 for a family of four and £89 for six, while prices for the five-meal plan range from £49 to £129 a week.