- Paket Mutfak, a local initiative, offers a solution focused solely on takeaway service to brands looking to capture a share of the ever-growing takeaway industry in Türkiye.
- This concept, known abroad as "ghost kitchen" and "virtual kitchen", is being introduced in Türkiye under the name "package kitchen".
- Founded by entrepreneurial cousins Tali Şalhon and Eytan Nahmiyas, Paket Mutfak has reached agreements with brands such as Akali, Chopt, Döner Plus, Untwoin and 400 Derece for its kitchens in its Ataşehir branch in the first month of its operations.
- Paket Mutfak aims to reach 50 restaurants in 5 different regions of Istanbul by the end of 2021.
August 12, 2020, Istanbul
The initiative allows restaurant owners to open a new takeaway branch without spending any capital Package Kitchen, made a rapid entry into the food industry.
What is a Package Kitchen?
Package Kitchen, (www.paketmutfak.com.tr) allows restaurant owners to open a new takeaway branch without spending any capital.
Package Kitchenprovides kitchens for customers looking to open a new takeaway service. It also handles operational tasks such as courier operations, order management, collection, security, and maintenance.
Package Kitchen, transforms empty spaces and warehouses in densely populated areas of Istanbul into takeaway kitchens that only provide takeaway services.
This concept, where 10-15 kitchens share a single building, each representing a different restaurant. Because these restaurants focus solely on takeout, they don't have seating areas. Restaurants accept orders through online ordering platforms like Yemeksepeti, GetirYemek, and Zomato, or by phone.
The story of entrepreneur cousins
In fact, Paket Mutfak isn't the first project to emerge from the partnership between Tali Şalhon and Eytan Nahmiyas. The two cousins, who frequently collaborated while Tali Şalhon was studying at Georgetown University and Eytan Nahmiyas was at George Washington University, have already undertaken notable projects together.
Eytan Nahmiyas and Tali Şalhon developed the location-based messaging app Radius while they were still students. After graduation, they became part of the founding team that developed Geld, Türkiye's first phone-to-phone money transfer software, and licensed it to Ak Öde (Tosla).
Following this experience, Tali Şalhon took over the management of Hanse Impex in Kenya. During her time at the helm, Şalhon implemented a pivot strategy that transformed the company into a profitable company with steady growth, achieving her mission.
Eytan Nahmiyas began working as a product manager at an API company called Even Financial in New York. Joining the company in its early days, Nahmiyas played a key role in its success story, which saw Even Financial reach a $180 million valuation and grow to 150 employees.
Having proven themselves in different fields for 2 years, the two cousins returned to Istanbul to realize the idea of Package Kitchen together in Türkiye.
Paket Mutfak closed its latest investment round with a post-investment valuation of $4 million.
Paket Mutfak, which has received a total investment of $825,000 since 2019, closed its latest investment round with a post-investment valuation of $4 million.
An advantageous model for the pandemic effect
In the early days of the pandemic, we saw slowdowns in the food and beverage sector, like many other sectors. While we haven't seen the same momentum in restaurant walk-in customers, we're seeing the takeout sector return to its former glory much more quickly.
Görüştüğümüz restoranlardan aldığımız bilgilere göre; pandemi dönemi öncesi hali hazırda gelirlerinin %30-40’ını paket servis yoluyla elde eden restoranlar, şu anda bu oranın %60-70 civarına olduğunu bizimle paylaşıyorlar.
This shift in consumer behavior presents specific challenges for traditional restaurants. Everything about a traditional restaurant's opening process is designed to provide the best possible service to its customers. However, when a significant portion of demand shifts from walk-in customers to takeout, restaurants can struggle to adapt effectively. In this era, the Takeout Kitchen model offers restaurant owners an alternative that focuses solely on takeout service, offering an advantageous option.
Responding to increasing hygiene expectations
In this model that focuses only on takeaway service;
- lack of foot customers
- lack of cash flow within the kitchen
- restaurants need fewer employees
- No need for reusable materials such as forks and knives
- contactless delivery options
Factors such as these make this model safer for the pandemic period.
Additionally, every courier and employee entering the Takeaway Kitchen building must pass through a disinfection station. Kitchen staff place prepared packages on the food shelves in the corridors, ensuring optimal social distancing between couriers and restaurant staff.
Co-founder Tali Şalhon: “The takeout industry is full of opportunities. However, opening a new branch carries significant risk. You'll be facing millions of lira in startup capital to open a new branch. You'll also have routine costs like courier operations, security, and maintenance. However, you simply want to prepare your food and deliver it to your customers. Package Kitchen makes this possible. With this new concept, we're bringing restaurants that are exclusively focused on takeout under our umbrella.”
Founding partner Eytan Nahmiyas said: “We are taking many of the financial and operational burdens our customers face at other branches. This allows them to focus on what they excel at: cooking. The most visible benefit of this is increased customer satisfaction. We aim for the restaurant's Takeaway Kitchen branch to be the fastest-growing of all its branches. We are looking for partners who want to grow rapidly in the takeaway sector and expand throughout Türkiye with us.”
Döner Plus partner İlker Kalma: “We don’t need the couriers, waiters, cashiers, dishwashers, accountants, and restaurant managers we employ at our other branches at our Paket Mutfak branch.”
Paket Mutfak's first customers, Döner Plus and Untwoin, began operations at the beginning of June. Each client produces two brands from their kitchens.
Döner Plus and Lahmacun Plus, both restaurants operating from a single kitchen, offer only takeout. Döner Plus and Lahmacun Plus co-owner İlker Kalma said, “We only have three cooks working at our Takeout Kitchen branch. Our cooks now only handle the incoming bills and cook their meals, while Takeout Kitchen handles everything else. We no longer need the couriers, waiters, cashiers, dishwashers, accountants, and restaurant managers we employ at our other branches at Takeout Kitchen.”
Target: 50 restaurants with 5 locations across Istanbul by the end of 2021
We aim to open at least 50 restaurants across Istanbul with 5 locations by the end of 2021. In the long term, we have growth goals across Türkiye and abroad.
Having started its Ataşehir branch with Döner Plus and Akali brands, Paket Mutfak will soon start operations with kitchens for brands such as Chopt and 400 Degree Pizza.
Paket Mutfak aims to launch its operations on the European side in 2020 and open branches in Maslak, Kadıköy, Bostancı and Etiler by the end of 2021.
From now on, the food you order for your home may come from a takeaway kitchen!
