SPRING 2021

With an undeniable spirit of innovation, we envision a world REEF ’ full of possibility—embracing market insights to transform truck-esque hubs can host up to six the industry and captivate consumers. Rich’s FUEL exists to brands in bring true insights directly to you: to grow your business by mostly urban parking fueling your imagination, possibilities, and impact. lots to expand delivery availability. REEF partners with F U E L Y O U R IMAGINATION independents and With the onset of the pandemic, ghost kitchens (delivery-only large chains alike. with no front-of-house) are increasingly popping up, serving as a lifeline for many operators. Boasting much lower overhead costs, ghost kitchens (which often operate out of THERE’S NOTHING rentable kitchens shared by other restaurant concepts) and virtual brands (delivery-only concepts operated out of existing SPOOKY ABOUT restaurants) can help new restaurant operators get a feel for what consumers want before opening a brick-and-mortar location. They GHOST KITCHENS can also give existing restaurants the opportunity to pivot and branch out by offering a new or (which could help UNCOVER THE RISE OF attract new business) or they can offer the same items as their GHOST KITCHENS & brick-and-mortar location, but to a new neighborhood or area. VIRTUAL BRANDS PUT IT INTO ACTION According to Datassential, nearly 60% of consumers will likely use digital ordering and delivery apps in the future, and 42% of operators believe ghost kitchens are a long-term trend, showing that there’s a lasting market for them. As we look to a future Click here to explore where delivery and ghost kitchens are more prominent, consider Rich’s Virtual Restaurant Resources: how various and beverages could be prepared for traveling https://www.richsusa.com/virtual-restaurants/ the distance to consumers. The industry should leverage the opportunity ghost kitchens and virtual brands provide to experiment with concepts that may not fit in well on the of already-established restaurants.

OF OPERATORS OF CONSUMERS THINK REACHING WOULD TRY A VIRTUAL OF CONSUMERS NEW CUSTOMERS RESTAURANT, EVEN IF ARE AWARE IS ONE OF THE IT WAS OPERATED BY OF GHOST 29% 33% MOST APPEALING 57% AN EXISTING RESTAURANTS ATTRIBUTES OF RESTAURANT THEY GHOST KITCHENS DON’T PREFER

Like the newsletter format? Inspired by the trends? Have questions about how Rich’s can help you execute? We welcome your feedback! Send an email to [email protected], and let us know what you think! OPERATOR SPOTLIGHT FUEL YOUR POSSIBILITIES Wondering how to get in on ghost and virtual brand trends? Rich’s G H O S T products can provide an easy solution. K I T C H E N & V I R T U A L B R A N D CONCEPTS

CITY DUMPLING, NEW YORK, NY (HQ) City Dumpling has no brick-and-mortar location. Instead, its food is prepared in the kitchens of a half-dozen restaurants around New York. The brand is powered by hospitality-tech company Kitch, which gives operators who lost business over the past year an opportunity to rent their excess kitchen space for another revenue stream. Found on City Dumpling’s menu are colorful attention-grabbing dumpling flavors (pictured above), ranging from the Impossible™ (features a filling of SOFT WHIP plant-based protein with onion in a powdered seaweed wrapper) to Pork Our innovative On Top® Soft Whip Pourable & Shrimp (includes fresh shrimp, lean pork, and chives in a purple Topping is thinner, lighter, easy to use & can cabbage wheat wrapper) to Chicken & Broccoli (showcases a wheat wrapper colored with pressed beets filled with hand-chopped chicken withstand travel time for delivery. Served in a and fresh broccoli). pourable carton, this product is ready to use in just three easy steps: shake, open, and pour LITTLE PARACHUTE, CHICAGO, IL to add sweet cream flavor and a hint of vanilla Little Parachute (an off-shoot of the restaurant Parachute) is an online- to any beverage. Whether you’re looking to only concept that emerged from the pandemic and is operating out of keep pace with beverage and trends — the Wherewithall kitchen in Chicago. Little Parachute offers iconic items or forge new ones — Soft Whip allows you to from Parachute’s menu like Baked Potato Bing Bread with sour cream do more, dream more, and pour more. Find butter, as well as concepts that were created specifically for delivery, more product details here. including Korean fried chicken or cauliflower with spicy gochujang sauce, as well as savory bowls like ddukbokki, featuring spicy ground pork ragu, peaches, Sichuan peppercorns, and chili.

OVER THE TOP Man vs. Fries is a Mexican- American delivery-only concept based in Washington D.C. offering over-the-top eye-catching offerings like the SoCal Burrito (pictured left), featuring a large flour tortilla filled with a choice of SLICED CIABATTA carne asada or pollo asado, SANDWICH BREAD Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, fries, cheese, Elevate your sandwich offerings with Rich sour cream, guacamole, secret Products’ Sliced Ciabatta Sandwich Bread. sauce, and a side of queso. Save on delivery & prep time behind the Currently, Man vs. Fries is counter and instantly turn a club or burger partnering with various existing into a gourmet offering. Find more product kitchens to feature pop-up shops across the nation. details here.

Like the newsletter format? Inspired by the trends? Have questions about how Rich’s can help you execute? We welcome your feedback! Send an email to [email protected], and let us know what you think!