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Bamboo for Business is a clever way to manage employee lunches.
The days of the limp sandwich at the desk may soon be retreating into the ages if enterprising start-up Bamboo has its way.
The young Dublin tech firm, a previous Siliconrepublic.com Start-up of the Week, has revealed a new way for companies to provide free lunches to hungry but time-poor staff.
In recent months, we reported how the food-ordering start-up raised €500,000 in a funding round led by Enterprise Ireland and involving six angel investors.
‘Employees can enjoy lunch and coffee on their own schedule’
– LUKE MACKEY
At the time, we reported how the company was working on a business component that enables businesses to supplement employees’ lunches with credit to buy and collect from nearby food and coffee outlets.
Bamboo was founded in 2016 by college graduates Luke Mackey and Alan Haverty. They launched their initial product in early 2017 after receiving Enterprise Ireland Competitive Start Fund support.
How to eat less time and more food
Image: Bamboo
The Bamboo app lets users buy food or drinks via their smartphones and simply collect their order without having to queue.
“The original problem we looked at from the start was that the average employee spends the first 15 to 20 minutes of their one-hour lunch waiting to order their lunch,” Mackey said in a Medium post outlining the features of the Bamboo for Business product.
“That works out over an hour a week of an employee’s break being taken from them. Then we looked at what that means for an organisation. If you’re a team of 60, that’s 60 hours a week of employee time being wasted. You can do the math for the weeks and months but the point is, it’s inefficient and not ideal for anyone.
“You can order in catering from a set menu, but you’ll never satisfy everyone and you’ll end up paying for wasted food. You can get delivery but, let’s be honest, it’s expensive and you’re going to be confined to walls of your office for the whole day.
“This is why we built Bamboo for Business. Employees can enjoy lunch and coffee on their own schedule. They can order, pay and earn rewards from their desk, and be in and out of the restaurant or café in seconds. They can choose from an abundance of great lunch and coffee spots immediately around their office, grab, go and enjoy the rest of their break with their co-workers,” Mackey said.
