MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (April 25, 2018) — As consumer demand for healthier, fresher and faster food rises, so does the desire to eat at home or order out from full-service restaurants conveniently. That’s why today, Zume Pizza is announcing the expansion of its patented Baked On The Way™ technology. To do so, the company is introducing a new corporate structure via Zume Inc and is partnering with Welbilt Inc (NYSE: WBT) to launch the second-generation of its Food Delivery Vehicles equipped with hyper-efficient, customizable foodservice appliances. This partnership allows Zume to open up its platform to other third-party food companies that want a more flexible system to cook en route and meet customer demand.
“Our mission is to feed the planet without ruining it, and we do that by providing healthier, more affordable food to every American. We recognize that we can’t do that by ourselves, which is why we are excited to partner with Welbilt and open up the platform to other food companies who share our vision,” says Alex Garden, CEO and co-founder of Zume. “In partnership with Welbilt, we’re poised to continue upending traditional notions about the way food is made and delivered.”
Expanding Baked On The Way™
As part of Zume’s strategy to develop better tools and processes with the aim of delivering healthier, sustainably-grown food, the company gets rid of the need for chemically stabilized meals by using Baked On The Way™ technology (BOTW). It’s through BOTW that ‘dwell time,’ or the period of time cooked food sits while en route for delivery, is eliminated.
Unlike traditional food trucks and delivery vehicles, which cannot cook while moving, Zume optimizes the baking and delivery process to ensure a customer’s meal is delivered at peak freshness. To make this happen, Zume predicts what customers will order and when, so that the Food Delivery Vehicles are optimized to cook and arrive at the delivery location without using chemical stabilizers to preserve food.
In 2018, Zume plans to serve to 26 additional markets with its first expansion of the year to Sunnyvale and Cupertino, followed by Santa Clara, Campbell, Redwood City, San Carlos, and Belmont.
Partnering Up with Welbilt to Introduce a New Generation of Food Delivery Vehicles
By partnering with a leading global supplier of commercial foodservice equipment, Zume and Welbilt are working to meet the needs of the $43B food delivery market in the US by making Zume’s platform accessible to more people and food companies.
To do this, Zume is introducing a suite of Food Delivery Vehicles 2.0, each powered with six high-efficiency ovens. In the case of Zume Pizza, the company can bake 120 pizzas per hour.
Looking ahead, Welbilt will work to create solutions that incorporate a significant portion of its portfolio of hyper-efficient, custom-built appliances into its Food Delivery Vehicles — including products like steamers, griddles, and broilers.
“We are very pleased to be working with Zume on their next generation Food Delivery Vehicle,” said Hubertus Muehlhaeuser, Welbilt’s President and CEO. “Their vision for how automation, connectivity, and artificial intelligence in the kitchen enhance the food delivery experience is closely aligned with Welbilt’s FitKitchen®. Our success with multiple accelerated cooking technology platforms demonstrates that we know how to identify industry-changing opportunities and seize them through agile technology discovery and rigorous product development.”
Introducing Zume Inc.
On a quest to be the most powerful source of health and well-being on the planet, Zume Pizza is introducing Zume Inc. This new structure allows Zume to continue to operate brands like Zume Pizza, and eventually cultivate a collection of companies and services alongside it.
The company will be run by CEO and Chairman Alex Garden, alongside the executive team, which hails from Union Square Hospitality Group, Lyft, Nike, Starbucks and Johnson & Johnson, to name a few.
To see open positions at Zume, visit: zumepizza.workable.com/
To order a Zume Pizza today, go to ZumePizza.com or download the app in the App Store or Google Play.
About Zume:
Nine billion people will inhabit the earth by mid-century. The health and well-being of people and our planet is dependent upon sustainably feeding that population with wholesome, affordable food on a global scale. Zume is meeting this challenge with an end-to-end, scalable platform that reduces the time and distance between clean food sources and dense population centers, using cutting-edge automation and transportation logistics. By developing better tools and processes, we can feed people healthier, sustainably-grown food, delivered fresh and free from chemical stabilization. Learn more at Zume-Inc.com
About Zume Pizza:
At Zume, we love pizza. It’s just one of those simple, favorite foods that can be made to please any taste. And when it’s made with wholesome ingredients of the highest quality and freshness, it’s irresistible. Pizza delivery is a $40B a year industry in America that impacts the health and well-being of people and the planet. Zume has established a formula for partnering people with technology that creates a more thoughtful and efficient way to source, make, bake and deliver pizza. In the process, we’re delivering an artisan pizza that takes care of the people who eat it and make it and even takes better care of the planet we all love. Learn more at ZumePizza.com
About Welbilt, Inc.
Welbilt, Inc. provides the world’s top chefs, premier chain operators and growing independents with industry-leading equipment and solutions. Our innovative products and solutions are powered by our deep knowledge, operator insights, and culinary expertise. We offer fully-integrated kitchen systems and our products are backed by KitchenCare® aftermarket parts and service. Headquartered in the Tampa Bay region of Florida and operating 17 manufacturing facilities throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia, we sell through a global network of over 3,500 distributors and dealers in over 100 countries. We have approximately 5,400 employees and generated sales of $1.45 billion in 2017. Our portfolio of award-winning brands includes Cleveland™, Convotherm®, Delfield®, FitKitchen®, Frymaster®, Garland®, Kolpak®, Lincoln™, Manitowoc® Ice, Merco®, Merrychef® and Multiplex®. For more information, visit www.welbilt.com.
