Usher And Jay-Z Take A Bite Out Of Hungry's $8 Million Series A
Summary
When Jonetta Patton opened J’s Kitchen Culinary Incubator, a place for Atlanta chefs to hone their craft and share resources, the hardest ingredient to find was customers. “We are allowing them to set their own hours, they make their own menus … it just gives them more time to be in the kitchen doing more of what they love doing, which is cooking amazing food.” The Pahlevanis founded Hungry after growing tired of what they perceived as an endless parade of unhealthy options when searching for ways to serve meals to the employees at their last startup, security outfit LiveSafe. Hungry may have earned the attention of famous investors like Jay-Z and Usher, but the company will face well-funded, entrenched incumbents from Panera to Seamless to Whole Foods as it seeks to expand. And then there’s the inertia that accompanies any office routine, not to mention the specter of increased telecommuting and challenges posed by the same gig economy in which Hungry’s chefs operate. “I see it growing and being successful hugely on a global level.” For more on the business of music, check out my Jay-Z biography Empire State of Mind and follow me on Twitter.