A new “alternative” food delivery app has been launched aiming to bring healthy, homemade takeaway food to customers’ doorsteps across Hull and East Yorkshire.
GoFoodie was officially launched to the public at Hull Business Expo in Princes Quay Shopping Centre on Wednesday, April 10.
The app enables customers to pre-order from local home cooks’ kitchens that are FSA hygiene-rated and local authority-registered and approved.
Working in the NHS, founder and CEO Dr Abdul Razack has seen first-hand just how a healthy diet can have an impact on people’s health. His wife is an accomplished cook of Indian food and their friends used to comment that she should go into business – thus the idea of GoFoodie was born.
The app was established in September 2023 and the first home cook that it hosted was Pavi’s Kitchen.
Adbul said: “It was a conscious decision to start small to see if the business model was viable, and it was also important that GoFoodie should be credible, legal and legitimate.”
Before a home cook can join the app, they must obtain their Level 2 Food Safety and Hygiene certificate, register their business with their local authority and receive at least a four-star food hygiene rating.
To that end, the GoFoodie team has taken time to work closely with Hull City Council and East Riding Council environmental officers to establish best practices. Both local authorities have been supportive and share the company’s enthusiasm to encourage entrepreneurship and develop new job opportunities in the area.
All cooks have full autonomy over their brand, menus, prices and days of operation. GoFoodie provides the platform to promote and sell their products. However, GoFoodie does recommend that kitchens use a pre-order and payment system. This assists cooks with planning because they know the number of meals to prepare and reduces the likelihood of food waste.
Being as sustainable as possible is a strong value for the company, and this also extends to the packaging used to deliver the food.
It is free to join the platform. The team explains what is required, and supports cooks as they register and get started. The monthly subscription and a commission from sales only begins from the fourth month of trading – again a conscious decision by the GoFoodie team to encourage cooks wondering about starting their business to be bold and take that first step.
Christine Bettinson, operations manager, said: “We cannot fully eliminate all costs, but we want to support the cooks and reduce costs where we are able.
“There will possibly be initial costs of buying equipment needed to scale the dishes and meet the hygiene regulations – simple things like separate chopping boards and knives for vegetables and meat, for example, and the initial outlay for ingredients for the first day of operation.
Mike White, merchant manager, said any kind of cuisine could be sold via the app. He said: “GoFoodie has home cooks providing Indian food, fitness food, salads and sweet treats, but any food from bakes and pastries to hot meals is welcome on the app.”
Christine added: “I first questioned whether sweet options were healthy, but, as Abdul says, anything that is homemade using fresh ingredients is healthier than shop-bought products that are mass-produced and often full of preservatives.”
GoFoodie is now looking to partner with a number of community kitchens to provide a solution for those unable to cook from home because of landlord agreements/mortgage covenants. The company confirms this is still in line with its concept because the cooks are cooking using fresh ingredients and delivering directly to customers.
Abdul added: “Participating in Hull Business Expo was the perfect opportunity for us to launch GoFoodie to the public, and hopefully spur on some new cooks to take that first step.”
