Featured Founder: Matt Redler of Chefit
Welcome to our Featured Founder series, where you’ll meet startup founders from Tampa-St. Petersburg who are building and scaling their ventures to solve some of the world’s greatest challenges. We interviewed Matt Redler, Founder of Chefit, an online ordering service where personal chefs prepare delicious meals in the comfort of your own home.
What were you doing previously, and what inspired you to launch your company?
I was studying business at the University of Florida, presiding over my fraternity, and coaching speech and debate champions. I followed an insanely busy schedule and ordered cold, soggy food delivery more often than I’m proud to admit. Around the same time, my girlfriend started a food-Instagram (@cookingwithsab) and became an impressively talented cook in a matter of weeks. I recognized the opportunity to connect insanely busy people like myself with skilled, passionate artisans like Sabrina, and Chefit was born. I then “took an indefinite leave of absence” from school. I avoid using the D-word.
What pain point is your company solving? What gets you excited to go to work every day?
Our customers enjoy all the comfort, freshness, and health benefits of home-cooked meals without ever having to worry about shopping, prepping, cooking, or cleaning. Chefit connects families with chefs to cook affordable delicious specialties right in the diner’s home.
Every day I’m blown away by the stories of our chef community. I am blessed to be able to be in a position to empower them and help them find financial success doing what they love.
Name the biggest challenge you faced in the process of launching the company. How did you overcome it?
Chefit was strapped for cash and actively running out of money during it’s founding summer. To catch the attention of investors, we needed to launch a product fast to show them we could hustle. We ended up putting together a duck-taped MVP and finding our earliest customers within ten days. Our speed was vital to our ability to keep the lights on.
Where do you see your company headed next?
Chefit is heading to Tampa! After raising our latest round led by Version One Ventures, we’re excited to be expanding into new areas and improving our technology. Starting in December, you can order a chef as easy as you’d order food delivery.
Give us a tactical piece of advice that you’d share with another founder just starting.
Speak to your customers as often as humanly possible.
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Originally published at https://www.embarccollective.com/
