SUPPLYCADDY
ence,” Galbut said. “We were able to show them why we needed products in a certain way and they were very responsive. I think that’s the level of detail they go to. They really wanted us to be happy and accomplished that with us.”
In March, SupplyCaddy raised $3.2 million in fresh capital from CEAS Investments, a Delray Beach-based firm. CEAS previously had invested in software companies but its chief investment officer Mike Wohl said he learned the young packaging company’s business was “exploding.” He saw how SupplyCaddy was serving clients in a unique, interactive way.
“When they put money out to buy an order, there’s a two-month gap,” Wohl said. “They were not established enough to get a line of credit for financing, which they will be able to do in the future.”
What also convinced Wohl to invest in SupplyCaddy was the cofounders’ zeal. Before getting the multimillion-dollar investment, Stein and Zaveth took out home equity lines of credit on their homes, loans and leveraged themselves to push the business as far as they could with personal funds. There was an extra gear the founders wanted to shift to in driving the company’s growth.
“We can afford now to be sustainable,” Saveth said. “While eliminating plastic products won’t be 100% achievable in a year or two, by 2030 we’ll be a paper and fiber-based company.”
EUCALYPTUS IN PACKAGING
Creating biodegradable packaging products is a top priority for SupplyCaddy. For example, Stein and Saveth have sourced oyster shells from Mexico that are biodegradable in 27 weeks and started using other materials such as eucalyptus fiber in sustainable packaging.
SupplyCaddy’s client list has expanded to include more prominent national and regional restaurant chains and food distributors. Besides Popeyes, they count as customers: Burger King; Auntie Anne’s; Carvel; Cinnabon; Sysco; Carl’s Jr.; Hardee’s; Moe’s Southwest Grill; Tijuana Flats; Delta Air Lines; entertainment mogul Kevin Hart’s Hart House plant-based restaurant chain with four locations in California, among others.
Just three years into their food packaging venture, things have changed significantly for the tandem. For instance, Stein and Saveth jet every six weeks from their Miami home base to the one of the company’s production sites in Turkey. Their focus is still striving to give customers bespoke packaging options that they can’t get from any other company in the industry.
“Whatever restaurants want to present, we want to make sure that packaging is what they want,” Stein said. “Presentation is one thing, but the raw materials going into it is another. Because of the ease of manufacturing, current manufacturers don’t think about that.”
Michael Butler: @mikeviimusic