Picnic at Work Reports Over 40% Annual Growth in Office Food Delivery Model

Travis Kalanick, co-founder of Uber, recently broke his social media silence to express enthusiastic support for Picnic at Work, his latest venture in the food technology sector. Kalanick, known for his disruptive approach to business, tweeted, "> I’ll come out of twitter retirement for this one… @picnicatwork LFG!! hat tip @williamlegate 🎩😎," signaling significant excitement for the company's trajectory. This public endorsement comes as Picnic at Work, a digital food court service for offices, reports substantial growth exceeding 40% annually.

Picnic at Work operates by delivering meals from over 100 restaurants directly to offices, distinguishing itself with a no-delivery-fee and no-tip model. The service, an offshoot of Kalanick's City Storage Systems (CSS) and its CloudKitchens ghost kitchen network, leverages a "batching" system where multiple orders are consolidated for a single delivery. This innovative approach significantly reduces the high costs typically associated with food delivery, allowing Picnic to offer competitive pricing by passing savings to customers.

The company's rapid expansion includes serving major metropolitan areas such as San Francisco, Mountain View, Los Angeles, Austin, and Houston. Industry experts, including supply chain consultant Brittain Ladd, have lauded Picnic's model, suggesting it has the potential to disintermediate traditional food delivery giants like DoorDash and Uber Eats. Ladd noted that "Kalanick knows that he has the 'next big thing' with Picnic," highlighting the strategic investment and focus CSS is dedicating to this business unit.

Kalanick's re-engagement with social media to champion Picnic underscores his continued influence in the tech and food delivery landscape. Since his departure from Uber in 2017, he has focused on City Storage Systems, which encompasses CloudKitchens and other related ventures. Picnic at Work represents his latest effort to revolutionize urban logistics and food services, building on his experience in scaling disruptive platforms.

Despite its rapid growth and innovative model, Picnic has faced scrutiny, including a lawsuit from Bay Area salad chain Mixt. Mixt alleged that Picnic resold its meals without permission, undercut prices, and delivered food at unsafe temperatures. Picnic, however, dismissed these claims as "fraudulent," asserting that its users showed a clear preference for other restaurant options, and the case has since moved to private arbitration.