F5

F5 Refreshment, operating under the legal name Kaivalya Foods and Beverages India Private Limited, is a direct-to-consumer (D2C) brand specializing in workplace refreshments. The company was founded in 2018 by IIM-Lucknow alumni Raghav Arora and Lalit Kumar Aggarwal. The founders aimed to organize and standardize the daily workplace consumption market in India, which they identified as a significant and largely fragmented industry.

The business operates as a retail aggregator, creating a network of branded refreshment stores by partnering with existing local vendors. This model allows F5 to provide technology, delivery, and management support to these small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), helping them to upskill and increase their revenue. The core offerings include freshly brewed tea, coffee, and snacks, which were initially delivered to corporate offices and have since expanded to business parks and educational institutions. Customers can use the F5 mobile application to subscribe to and manage their daily orders for food and beverages. Products are prepared in company-operated cloud kitchens and delivered through a proprietary micro-delivery system.

F5's business model focuses on creating a hyperlocal ecosystem to serve the daily needs of consumers in the workplace. It provides vendor partners with opportunities to upsell and cross-sell a range of products and services. Since its inception, the startup has received support from incubators like Huddle and has secured funding from various investors, including Venture Catalysts, LetsVenture, and Auxano Capital. By June 2020, the company had onboarded over 4,000 paying consumers in Delhi and Lucknow and was selling over 8,000 cups of tea daily.

Keywords: workplace refreshments, D2C food brand, food and beverage, retail aggregator, on-demand supply, subscription service, hyperlocal delivery, corporate catering, snack delivery, tea and coffee, cloud kitchen, vendor partnership, food-tech, office supplies, India