Home Chef

{{Infobox company

| name = Home Chef

| logo = File:Home Chef logo.svg

| industry = Meal kits

| founded = {{start date and age|2013|06}}

| founder = Patrick Vihtelic

| location = Chicago, Illinois

| area_served = United States

| key_people = Patrick Vihtelic (CEO)

| parent = Kroger

| type = Subsidiary

| services = Meal delivery service

| num_employees = Over 800{{cite web | last=Ori | first=Ryan | title=Home Chef moving HQ to Wrigley Building | website=Crain's Chicago Business | date=February 2, 2017 | url=http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20170202/CRED03/170209966/home-chef-moving-hq-to-wrigley-building | access-date=January 4, 2018}}

| website = {{url|www.homechef.com}}

}}

Home Chef is a Chicago-based meal kit and food delivery company that delivers pre-portioned ingredients and recipes to subscribers weekly in the United States.{{cite magazine|last=Mangis |first=Carol |url=https://www.pcmag.com/review/347800/home-chef |title=Home Chef Meal Delivery Service Review & Rating |magazine=PC Magazine |date=1970-01-01 |access-date=2017-12-23}}{{cite magazine|url=http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20171201/ISSUE01/171209985/your-lunch-disrupted |title=Your lunch, disrupted |magazine=Crain's Chicago Business |access-date=2017-12-23}}{{cite web|author=Rajn, Brandt Ranj |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/home-chef-meal-delivery-service-review-2017-5 |title=How Home Chef, one of the newest meal subscription boxes, stacks up against its competition |website=Business Insider |date=2017-11-08 |access-date=2017-12-23}} According to the company it delivers three million meals monthly to its subscribers.{{cite web|last1=Schug|first1=Debra|title=Home Chef opens new Chicagoland-area facility|url=https://www.foodengineeringmag.com/articles/97339-home-chef-opens-new-chicagoland-area-facility|website=Food Engineering|language=en|date=2 March 2018}}

On May 24, 2018, Kroger announced they were acquiring Home Chef for $200 million with an additional $500 million in incentives if certain targets were met by Home Chef. Neil Stern (May 23, 2018). [https://www.forbes.com/sites/neilstern/2018/05/23/kroger-buys-home-chef-as-the-meal-kit-industry-rapidly-consolidates/ Kroger Buys Home Chef as the Meal Kit Industry Rapidly Consolidates] Forbes. Retrieved May 24, 2018.{{Cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-kroger-home-chef-merger-20180523-story.html|title=Kroger deal to acquire Chicago meal kit company Home Chef could be worth as much as $700M|last=Marotti|first=Ally|website=chicagotribune.com|access-date=2020-04-14}}{{Cite news|last=Haddon|first=Heather|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/kroger-buys-meal-kit-company-home-chef-in-latest-online-acquisition-1527106553|title=Kroger Buys Meal-Kit Company Home Chef in Latest Online Acquisition|date=2018-05-23|work=Wall Street Journal|access-date=2020-04-14|language=en-US|issn=0099-9660}} The acquisition closed during the end of June 2018 and the meal kits began to be stocked at Kroger stores in the middle of 2018.{{Cite news|url=https://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/Article/2018/07/01/Home-Chef-gears-up-for-Kroger-meal-kit-launch-We-re-been-solving-the-dinner-next-week-problem-but-not-the-dinner-tonight-problem|title=Home Chef gears up for Kroger meal kit launch: 'We're been solving the dinner next week problem, but not the dinner tonight problem'|last=Watson|first=Elaine|date=1 July 2018|work=Food Navigator|access-date=3 July 2018}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnbc.com/video/2018/06/01/kroger-acquiring-home-chef-as-it-expands-into-meal-delivery-space.html|title=Kroger acquiring Home Chef as it expands into meal delivery space|date=2018-06-01|website=CNBC|language=en|access-date=2020-04-14}}

Overview

Home Chef is a meal delivery service that provides a box of pre-portioned fresh ingredients directly to consumers that are ready to cook. With distribution centers in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Lithonia, Georgia, Home Chef delivers meals to all of the lower 48 states.{{cite web|last1=Ha|first1=Anthony|title=Meal kit service Home Chef raises $40M|url=https://techcrunch.com/2016/09/29/home-chef-series-b//|website=TechCrunch|access-date=29 September 2016}} Each meal kit comes with recyclable packaging, pre-portioned ingredients, and meal instructions. The rotating menu includes up to 15 meals{{cite web|title=The Home Chef Menu For the Week of June 04|url=https://www.homechef.com/our-menu|website=Home Chef|access-date=29 May 2018|language=en}} for dinner, and the company also provides a weekly breakfast, lunch, smoothie and fruit basket option.{{cite web|last1=Sims|first1=Bob|title=Home Chef secures growth capital|url=http://www.meatpoultry.com/articles/news_home/Business/2016/05/Home_Chef_secures_growth_capit.aspx?ID=%7B2E818D0A-FC44-4346-87C3-97CE1BF61584%7D&cck=1|website=Meat and Poultry|access-date=14 June 2016}}

History

Founder and CEO, Patrick Vihtelic started Home Chef in June 2013.{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-homechef-m-a/meal-kit-company-home-chef-reviews-options-including-sale-sources-idUSKBN19D2Z5|title=Meal kit company Home Chef reviews options including sale: sources|date=22 June 2017|work=Reuters|access-date=23 December 2017}} In September 2016, the company raised $40 million in funding from consumer-focused private equity fund L Catterton.{{cite web|last=Linder|first=Matt|title=Home Chef raises $40 million, its biggest funding round yet|url=https://www.digitalcommerce360.com/2016/09/30/home-chef-raises-40-million-its-biggest-funding-round-yet/|website=DigitalCommerce360}} In late 2017, Home Chef started selling their products through Walmart, in addition to its website.{{cite web|url=https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/12/19/walmart-and-amazon-compete-for-the-5-billion-meal.aspx |title=Walmart and Amazon Compete for the $5 Billion Meal-Kit Market That's Slipping Away From Blue Apron |publisher=The Motley Fool |date=2017-12-19 |access-date=2017-12-23}}

The meal kits were available in select Kroger and Walgreens locations at the end of 2018.{{cite web|title=Kroger Rolls Out Meal Kits, Curated Assortment at Walgreens|url=https://shoppermarketingmag.com/kroger-rolls-out-meal-kits-curated-assortment-walgreens|date=5 December 2018}}

In early 2019, Home Chef added a customization feature, where the user can swap the protein, double the amount of protein or upgrade to a higher grade of protein by using the website.{{cite web|title=Kroger, Home Chef bringing meal kits to more people|url=https://www.foodbusinessnews.net/articles/13276-kroger-home-chef-bringing-meal-kits-to-more-people |date=7 February 2019}}

In August 2019, Home Chef launched Fresh and Easy, another meal kit provider and food delivery service.{{Cite web|url=http://www.hungry-girl.com/ask-hg-q-and-a/fresh-and-easy|title=Healthy Dinner Shortcut: No Ingredient Chopping, No Cleanup, Cheaper Than Groceries|date=2019-09-11|website=Hungry Girl|access-date=2019-11-28}}