Ritual Founder Attributes Rapid Growth to Slow Start
*By Amanda Weston*
Food pickup app Ritual has big expansion plans. But its founder says the company's rapid growth can actually be traced back to a slower start.
"Ritual's about your neighborhood, and I think what a lot of other companies did differently was they tried to go too broad too quickly, and they just lack the depth and coverage that Ritual has," Ray Reddy, co-founder and CEO of Ritual, told Cheddar Wednesday. "And we still approach the world neighborhood by neighborhood, and ensure that it's actually compelling."
"There's enough coffee and lunch assortment in every neighborhood, and I think we've really just gotten the model right over the last few years, and so now that that's baked, we're able to move really, really fast."
Ritual bills itself as an app that connects restaurants with customers, offering a simple, time-saving tool to arrange lunch orders for both individuals and workplace teams.
The company announced Wednesday it has expanded into the U.K. and Australia, with more plans for European growth. It is also set to be in more than 40 North American cities and have more than triple its merchant count by the end of 2019.
The food app space is growing increasingly more crowded, but Reddy isn't fazed by the competition.
"It makes sense to have a first party app to focus on maybe your top five to 10 percent of your customers, but the remaining 80 percent are likely going to be on apps like Ritual or other types of third parties," Reddy said. "As a brand, your choice is do you want to still have a conversation with those customers? Do you want to still market to them even if you can't through the app directly? And I think the answer for the most part is yes."
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/food-app-ritual-is-cooking-up-big-growth-for-2019).
Orangetheory Fitness is redefining the future of workouts with smarter tech, strength-based programming, and community-driven studios built for what’s next.
Spain's government has fined Airbnb 64 million euros or $75 million for advertising unlicensed tourist rentals. The consumer rights ministry announced the fine on Monday. The ministry stated that many listings lacked proper license numbers or included incorrect information. The move is part of Spain's ongoing efforts to regulate short-term rental companies amid a housing affordability crisis especially in popular urban areas. The ministry ordered Airbnb in May to remove around 65,000 listings for similar violations. The government's consumer rights minister emphasized the impact on families struggling with housing. Airbnb said it plans to challenge the fine in court.
Roomba maker iRobot has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, but says that it doesn’t expect any disruptions to devices as the more than 30-year-old company is taken private under a restructuring process. iRobot said that it is being acquired by Picea through a court-supervised process. Picea is the company's primary contract manufacturer. The Bedford, Massachusetts-based anticipates completing the prepackaged chapter 11 process by February.
Serbia’s prosecutor for organized crime has charged a government minister and three others with abuse of position and falsifying of documents related to a luxury real estate project linked to U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. The charges came on Monday. The investigation centers on a controversy over a a bombed-out military complex in central Belgrade that was a protected cultural heritage zone but that is facing redevelopment as a luxury compound by a company linked to Kushner. The $500 million proposal to build a high-rise hotel, offices and shops at the site has met fierce opposition from experts at home and abroad. Selakovic and others allegedly illegally lifted the protection status for the site by falsifying documentation.
