Eat Well Nashville’s business heated up during the pandemic. Like many food-delivery and premade meal businesses, the company experienced astronomical growth. In 2021, Eat Well sold nearly 500,000 meals — a 43 percent increase in orders from the year prior — and earned a spot on the Inc. 5,000 list (not to mention a spot in the Scene’s own New Discoveries issue).
To keep up with the surge in demand, Eat Well Nashville is doubling down. This year, the 6-year-old company will move its operations from its 5,000-square-foot facility on Interstate Boulevard to a 12,000-square-foot space on Bransford Avenue and increase its workforce from 50 to 100 employees. These announcements come on the heels of the hiring of Chris Ricci as its new CEO. Ricci was recruited by Eat Well’s co-founders six months ago to spearhead the scaling of the broadening business.
Founded in 2016 by Rob Bellenfant and Yasar Chaudhary, Eat Well Nashville says they deliver 8,000 to 10,000 premade meals a week to homes and businesses across more than 50 ZIP codes in Middle Tennessee, reportedly selling more than 2 million meals to date. The meals are prepared using fresh, locally sourced ingredients, and the only “cooking” required is reheating the single-serve recyclable container for 1 to 2 minutes in the microwave. The company tailors its menus based on an array of specialty diets, including vegetarian, gluten-free and more.
A zero-waste company, Eat Well also touts its commitment to sustainability, donating its food scraps to Ancient Nutrition’s Regenerative Agriculture and Sustainability Ranch in Summertown, Tenn. The discarded food is recycled as animal feed and used for composting. On average, Ricci estimates Eat Well donates around 500 pounds of food scraps each week to the farm.
“Last year, there was a snowstorm that prevented us from reaching and delivering about 8,000 meals to our customers,” says Ricci. “The customers were refunded, but we weren’t going to toss the meals. Instead, we donated all of the meals — over six figures in value — to individuals in need.”
With double the space and employees at the new location, Ricci says Eat Well will ramp up production and deliver between 20,000 and 30,000 meals each week in 2022 and 2023. He also has plans to expand the company's catering arm, product offerings and retail presence by selling Eat Well’s premade meals in local coffee shops, grocers and eateries.
