Freshly is a New York-based prepared meal delivery company that delivers throughout the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Founded by Michael Wystrach and Carter Comstock, the company ships one million meals per week and delivers to the

contiguous United States The contiguous United States (officially the conterminous United States) consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the Federal District of the United States of America. The term excludes the only two non-contiguous states, Alaska and Hawaii ...

. In 2020 Freshly was acquired by

Nestlé Nestlé S.A. (; ; ) is a Switzerland, Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. It is the largest publicly held food company in the world, measured by revenue and other me ...

for US$1.5 billion.

History

Freshly was founded by Michael Wystrach and Carter Comstock in 2012. Influenced by 4-H program initiatives, Wystrach adopted minimal

food waste Food loss and waste is food that is not eaten. The causes of food waste or loss are numerous and occur throughout the food system, during production, processing, distribution, retail and food service sales, and consumption. Overall, about o ...

and

sustainability Specific definitions of sustainability are difficult to agree on and have varied in the literature and over time. The concept of sustainability can be used to guide decisions at the global, national, and individual levels (e.g. sustainable livi ...

into Freshly's menus. The company delivers all meals for a given week and are heated by

microwave Microwave is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths ranging from about one meter to one millimeter corresponding to frequencies between 300 MHz and 300 GHz respectively. Different sources define different frequency ran ...

or oven without preparation. Freshly also donates excess ingredients and meals to local

food banks A food bank is a non-profit, charitable organization that distributes food to those who have difficulty purchasing enough to avoid hunger, usually through intermediaries like food pantries and soup kitchens. Some food banks distribute food direc ...

as part of its partnership with

Feeding America Feeding America is a United States–based nonprofit organization that is a nationwide network of more than 200 food banks that feed more than 46 million people through food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, and other community-based agencies. ...

. CEO Michael Wystrach sought to lose weight after he saw a decline in his overall health following years working in

investment banking Investment banking pertains to certain activities of a financial services company or a corporate division that consist in advisory-based financial transactions on behalf of individuals, corporations, and governments. Traditionally associated wit ...

. His family operated a restaurant, The Steak Out in

Sonoita, Arizona Sonoita (; ood, Ṣon ʼOidag) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States. The population was 818 at the 2010 census. The origin of the name of the CDP is the O'odham ''Ṣon ʼOidag'', which may be best t ...

and a family friend,

emergency room An emergency department (ED), also known as an accident and emergency department (A&E), emergency room (ER), emergency ward (EW) or casualty department, is a medical treatment facility specializing in emergency medicine, the acute care of pati ...

doctor Frank Comstock helped prepare nutritious meals. Co-founder Carter Comstock, the son of Frank Comstock, joined Freshly in 2012. Following a $7 million

Series A round A series A round (also known as series A financing or series A investment) is the name typically given to a company's first significant round of venture capital financing. The name refers to the class of preferred stock sold to investors in exchan ...

, in 2016, the company raised $21 million in a

funding round A securities offering (or funding round or investment round) is a discrete round of investment, by which a business or other enterprise raises money to fund operations, expansion, a capital project, an acquisition, or some other business purpose. ...

led by

Insight Venture Partners Insight Partners (previously Insight Venture Partners) is an American venture capital and private equity firm based in New York City. The firm invests in growth-stage technology, software and Internet businesses. History Insight Partners was fo ...

. In 2017, Nestle led a $77 million funding round that added its USA's Food Division President to Freshly's board and an East Coast kitchen and distribution center built in 2018. Amid the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Freshly donated prepared foods worth the equivalent of $500,000 to

Meals on Wheels Meals on Wheels is a programme that delivers meals to individuals at home who are unable to purchase or prepare their own meals. The name is often used generically to refer to home-delivered meals programmes, not all of which are actually named ...

and reported sales up 50% year over year. In 2020, Freshly expanded to business-to-business food delivery, including to hospitals and essential service workers. In December 2020 the company launched FreshlyFit to cater to active lifestyles and low-carb, high-protein diets. In 2021, Freshly opened a 134,000 square-foot production facility in

Austell, Georgia Austell is a city in Cobb and Douglas Counties in the U.S. state of Georgia. It is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 7,713. History The area that is now Austell was frequented by game ...

. In December 23, 2022 sent out an email to its subscribers stating, “ It is with a heavy heart that we are announcing that the Freshly meal delivery service will be winding down in early 2023. This is a difficult time as we say goodbye to our incredible community.” This was also posted on their website. They will aplow orders to still be placed until January 17th, 2023 with the final orders being shipped until January 21, 2023.

References

External links

Freshly CEO Michael Wystrach on Cheddar
{{Online food ordering Subscription services American companies established in 2012 Transport companies established in 2012 Online food retailers of the United States Retail companies established in 2012 Internet properties established in 2012 Online food ordering