Consumers today are seeking more nutritious options when it comes to their diet, but many cannot find the time to laboriously shop for and prepare such meals. One solution that became popular over the last few years is the home delivery meal plan, in which such companies as HelloFresh, Fresh N Lean or EveryPlate send pre-packaged healthy meal kits directly to a consumer’s door. If used repeatedly, these delivery meal plans can become expensive due to shipping costs. Therefore, the latest trend gaining traction has been for companies to merge the meal plan delivery subscription concept with dine-in locations, in which customers can opt to pick up pre-packaged meals themselves at physical sites. Both Everytable and Clean Eatz appear to be the frontrunners of this trend and hope to expand the concept into areas that lack adequate healthy and affordable quick-service food options.
Everytable anticipates opening 50 new restaurants this year, and between 50 and 75 new restaurants per year in both 2024 and 2025, via franchising. The brand is benefiting from a $25M Series C-2 round of capital led by the Dohmen Company Foundation’s investment fund, which will assist in its expansion goals. The bulk of new locations will continue throughout Southern California and New York City. By next year, Everytable will be eyeing new markets in Northern California, Phoenix, Chicago and all of Texas, in addition to more East Coast-based cities such as Washington, D.C., Boston and Philadelphia.
Ideal sites for Everytable can be as small as 250 s.f., and no larger than 1,500 s.f., with limited dine-in seating for customers who choose to eat their meals on the premises (in-store microwaves can heat up the pre-packaged items as needed). Preferred sites are inline or end caps in strip centers or grocery-anchored centers in urban or retail-heavy suburban neighborhoods near a busy street. Sites can be in both middle income-range communities and more disadvantaged neighborhoods, and co-tenants can include ethnic grocers, reduced price retailers such as Dollar Tree or dd’s DISCOUNTS, and other fresh food-type eateries, such as Jersey Mike’s.
Everytable has a goal of providing affordable and accessible nutritious grab-and-go meal options specifically to communities that have a lack of healthy options, and food items will be priced higher in more upscale areas to help subsidize the lower priced items in more disenfranchised areas. Everytable will also roll out its Social Equity Franchise Program this year, which specifically targets minorities and women from marginalized backgrounds to be trained as future franchisee owners. The company also offers delivery plan options for its chef-prepared meals, as well as vending machine “SmartFridges” in schools and hospital settings.
Clean Eatz expects to open between 25 and 35 new units per year over the next three years. The meal plan/ restaurant chain will be focused on growth into new states such as Wyoming and Massachusetts, with continued expansion taking place in other states where it is still underpenetrated, such as Arizona, Kentucky, Colorado, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Texas, especially Austin, and Florida, most notably in Orlando and Palm Beach. Earlier this year Clean Eatz hired a new CFO in expectation of its upcoming aggressive franchise development plans.
Expect Clean Eatz to seek space in the 1,800- to 2,800-s.f. range, in suburban or exurban communities with a demographic interested in healthy eating, including office commuters with limited time, as well as stay-at-home moms who want to eat more nutritiously. End caps or inline spaces in strip malls, retail street fronts, lifestyle centers or power centers are especially sought after. Co-tenants nearby should include popular high-traffic errand retailers or service providers, such as Best Buy, Target, Sola Salon Studios or a gas station. Sites should be on busy retail-heavy thoroughfares.
Focused on wellness, Clean Eatz offers pre-packaged meal plan foods that customers can pick up for the week (or they can opt for home delivery), as well as in-shop grab-and-go items along with a café that prepares fresh meals. All of the food contains little to no sodium or sugars for a truly “clean” eating experience.
