Web Exclusive: Business Duo Launches Canada’s First Kids’ Meal-Delivery Service

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By Nicole Di Tomasso

On days when parents are too busy or stressed to prepare home-cooked meals for their children, they can order healthy, ready-to-heat kids’ meals right to their doors with The Kids’ Table, Canada’s first kids’ meal-delivery service based out of Toronto.

Launched in January 2021 by Nicolette Flemming and Joan Butler, The Kids’ Table menu was developed in collaboration with McEwan’s Fine Foods and currently offers 25 traditional favourites with an international twist, such as Chef Mark’s Spaghetti Bolognese, All Stirred Up Shrimp Pad Thai, Ba-zing-a Lemongrass Chicken-on-a-Stick with Rice and Mexi-Can-Can Chicken. Some of the offerings are rotated weekly to keep the meals exciting and attract repeat customers.

“We reached out to potential caterers and went through them in terms of pros and cons,” says Flemming, co-founder of The Kids’ Table. “We met with a handful of them, and McEwan’s Fine Foods turned out to be the best fit for us. We knew they had a great brand, and they’re committed to quality, which is what we wanted particularly for our kids’ meals.”

Currently, The Kids’ Table delivers its meals once a week, on Sundays, using a third-party delivery service to Toronto and the GTA, as well as Hamilton, Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph and Cambridge, Ont. Since its inception, The Kids’ Table has delivered roughly 50,000 meals.

Although the start-up launched during the pandemic, Butler says the duo had been mulling over the idea prior to the public-health crisis. In fact, it was Flemming’s son, Ian, who initially came up with the new concept. Flemming brought the idea to long-time friend, Butler, and they began working together to bring this vision to life. Ian continues to help out with different parts of the business, such as customer service. That said, the pandemic acted as a catapult for the business as more parents were experiencing higher stress levels and burnout.

“When we were in the planning stages, COVID-19 was nowhere in sight. It wasn’t part of what we planned for,” says Butler, co-founder of The Kids Table. “We were more concerned about reaching parents who were stressed and stretched thin. Then, COVID-19 happened and it was even more so.”

Making the leap from employee to entrepreneur was challenging for both Flemming and Butler. Previously, Flemming worked on marketing campaigns for Coca-Cola Canada, BMO Financial Group and other major companies. Butler, on the other hand, was a freelance advertising writer. With the help of food-industry consultant, Peter Carruthers, Flemming and Butler were able to get their business of the ground.

“My background is in marketing, so it has been interesting to see how the marketing landscape has changed in the last five to 10 years,” says Flemming. “I’ve had the opportunity to learn new skills.”

“For me, the most fascinating thing has been learning how to run a business,” says Butler. “I’ve always worked for other people. It’s a real learning curve, but I’ve been enjoying the process.”

Flemming continues, “We started this category of home-delivered kids’ meals, so it was tough because we didn’t have any background information to go to in Canada. The other challenge when starting a business is raising enough capital to keep the business going. It certainly helps when you’ve got revenue coming in, but it’s definitely challenging. Building awareness in a city like Toronto is expensive.”

While The Kids’ Table is still in its infancy, Flemming and Butler are prioritizing menu development and brand awareness for the time being. In the near future, the duo will work on becoming a national brand by forming strategic partnerships.

“We keep our ear to the ground and gather feedback from our customers in terms of meals they’d like to see,” says Flemming. “We have to grow our business organically right now to make it substantial enough so these future strategic-business alliances can work mutually and be beneficial for everyone.”

“Toronto is a big market, and we’ve barely tapped the surface,” says Butler. “We know we can do much better in Toronto, so we have to get our name out there. But as serious as we are about growing our business, we don’t ever want to forget that our main focus is kids. We want to be seen as a fun company with delicious food.”

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