Startup Grossr Is Democratising Meal Kits: Chefs & Charities Can Create Their Meal Plan Integrated With Online Shopping

Coeliac New Zealand, Kidspot Kitchen, and low-Fodmap Instagram influencer Thea Thyme partner with Grossr to launch first meal plans

Startup Grossr has entered the meal kit and grocery shopping innovation game, but with a twist: any chef or foodie can create a meal plan, which people can subscribe to and shop instantly via supermarket online shopping as a meal kit.

“The problem with traditional meal kits is the expense, plastic waste, and lack of flexibility,” says co-founder Nick Sinclair. “There’s generally just one ‘star chef’ who has a certain style of food, which feels repetitive after a while. Yes, they’re convenient – but they only cater to a certain demographic, and aren’t accessible if you’re less well-off or have particular dietary needs.

“We’re creating an easy, convenient, and flexible meal planning and shopping experience that aims to make cooking more affordable, rather than more of a luxury. You can choose a meal plan that suits you, receive new recipes each week, and then in one click the ingredients are a custom check-off shopping list which you can also shop seamlessly through supermarket online shopping.”

Co-founder Wyoming Paul says, “Because the platform can host countless different chefs and meal plans, our aim is that everyone will be able to find a plan that suits their taste, dietary needs, and lifestyle.”

At $4.50 per week or $16 per month ($3.69/wk) for a meal plan subscription, Grossr aims to make meal planning and a better shopping experience accessible to everyone.

Grossr launches the platform with three innovation partners, each of which have provided a unique meal plan or recipes. Partners are Coeliac New Zealand, Kidspot Kitchen, and low-Fodmap homecook and Instagram influencer Thea Thyme. Most of the profit generated from Grossr subscriptions goes to the partners, providing much needed funding for the not-for-profit organisations, and another revenue stream for chefs and foodies.

“There are so many talented chefs and foodies out there, creating fantastic recipes and specialising in different types of food and diets,” says Wyoming. “We wanted to connect these fantastic chefs with seamless technology, so that not only can anyone create a meal plan - they can also provide their audience with features like self-generating, customisable ingredient lists and automatic online supermarket shopping, that makes the weekly shop incredibly easy.”

Wyoming adds, “We also love the idea of people being able to turn their recipes into a meal plan and monetise them, because it creates another revenue stream for restaurateurs and chefs who may be struggling post-Covid.”

Coeliac New Zealand Food Ambassadors provide coeliac-safe recipes for Grossr’s gluten-free meal plan, while Thea Thyme has a vegetarian meal plan, as well as a meal plan for those following a low-Fodmap diet. Kidspot Kitchen has a meal plan with recipes catered to busy families.

“Traditional meal kits may not cater well for people with coeliac disease or those looking for

Fodmap friendly recipes,” says Wyoming, “and certainly not the ability to customise a weekly menu with different recipes catering to different dietary requirements - at a cost that is affordable. It also enables people with special dietary requirements such as coeliac disease to shop using their favourite gluten free brands or remove an item from the shopping list if they already have it in their pantry.”

Coeliac New Zealand’s Sales and Marketing Manager, Dana Alexander, says she’s excited to

contribute gluten free recipes from Coeliac NZ Food Ambassadors for Grossr’s gluten free meal

kit experience so that New Zealanders living with coeliac disease, and others who must follow a

gluten free diet, can get inspired in the kitchen. “When people subscribe to the gluten free meal

plan, they are helping us support people with the disease with information, education and advice

throughout their coeliac journey and raising awareness about our Crossed Grain Logo

accreditation for gluten free products.”

Kidspot Kitchen’s Sales Business Manager, Claudia Holland, says, “We’re really pleased to be an early innovation partner with Grossr - Kidspot was created to help parents and families make life easier, and Grossr takes a lot of mental and practical effort out of the weekly shop. With the rise in supermarket prices, we hope that a curated Kidspot Kitchen meal plan will make the food shop more affordable for families on a budget, while keeping meals interesting, balanced and delicious.”

Thea Thyme has always loved food, with the passion really kicking in after moving out of home and cooking for herself. She is self-taught through personal experimentation and believes that food is to be shared, enjoyed and should bring everyone together around the table, which is what brought her to Instagram and Grossr. "I started making low fodmap meals for my partner and I while following a low fodmap diet as we struggled to find good, interesting recipes that we actually wanted to eat. I loved the challenge of making something that not only tasted good, but was tummy-friendly without any of the side effects. Now I share my recipes to help others with sensitive or funny tummies."

Currently, Grossr has an integration with New World. However, the startup will soon partner with other supermarkets to give people more choice about where they can ‘auto-shop’ the meal plans. They will also continue to add more meal plans by different chefs, expanding the range of recipes available.

The founders, Wyoming Paul and Nick Sinclair, have bootstrapped the startup after working at award-winning tech startup Parkable.

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