Wetaca

Wetaca is a food-tech company operating in the meal delivery sector, providing chef-prepared, ready-to-heat meals on a weekly subscription basis. The company was founded in Madrid, Spain, in 2014 by Andrés Casal and Efrén Álvarez. The pair met at university and shared a passion for gastronomy and business. Their venture was born from a personal need: as young professionals with long working hours, they lacked the time to cook nutritious daily meals. The initial concept was tested by cooking on Sundays, vacuum-sealing individual portions, and sharing them with roommates and friends.

The founders' backgrounds were complementary to the business idea. Efrén Álvarez, who studied Business Administration and Actuarial and Financial Sciences, participated in the first season of the television show MasterChef Spain. This experience led him to an internship at the three-Michelin-star restaurant Abac, where he learned about vacuum-sealing and cold-line production techniques used in high-end kitchens to maintain quality and freshness throughout the week. Andrés Casal studied Business Administration and had a brief stint as a CFO for a small textile company before co-founding Wetaca. This financial and business acumen complemented Álvarez's culinary and operational focus. Starting with a mere €150 for a vacuum-sealing machine, they initially managed orders via an Excel sheet and an email list before launching a professional kitchen.

Wetaca's business model is primarily a direct-to-consumer (D2C) weekly subscription service. Customers select from a rotating menu of approximately 40 different dishes each week, place their order online, and receive a single weekly delivery. The meals are designed to be heated in a microwave for three minutes and are delivered in vacuum-packed containers, which preserves them in the refrigerator for up to eight days without additives or preservatives. This model provides the company with predictable demand, which is crucial for managing food production and minimizing waste. While its main focus is individual consumers, Wetaca has also started exploring the B2B market, offering meal plans for companies to provide as an employee benefit, with options for delivery to the office or the employee's home.

The company targets individuals who value eating well but lack the time or inclination to cook daily. The service offers a variety of cuisines, including traditional stews, pasta, and vegetarian options. Revenue is generated directly from the sale of these meal subscriptions. The company has shown significant growth, reporting revenues of €16 million in 2023 and serving over 250,000 meals per month as of early 2023. After bootstrapping and receiving a loan from family, Wetaca secured its first venture capital funding round in 2016 and has raised a total of approximately $2.57 million from investors including Cabiedes & Partners and Bewater Funds.

Keywords: meal delivery service, food subscription, ready-to-eat meals, chef-prepared food, food-tech, weekly meal plan, vacuum-sealed meals, direct-to-consumer food, Madrid food startup, Efrén Álvarez, Andrés Casal, online food delivery, healthy convenience food, microwave meals, corporate meal plans, B2C e-commerce, Spanish startup, tuppers a domicilio, comida casera, ready-to-heat