Shea Coakley and Peter Roy would never describe themselves as health nuts. They would, however, say they wanted healthier food at work. When time didn't allow for a lengthy lunchbreak, the two craved access to the kind of nutritious items not being stocked in their floor's existing vending machines.
So, the duo decided to turn the everyday vending machine on its head.
"Imagine the Whole Foods' prepared food section stuffed into a three-by-four space for the office," Coakley said.
Rather, imagine LeanBox, the innovative fresh-food kiosk currently serving employees around Greater Boston, including those from Constant Contact, Wayfair and the Cambridge Innovation Center.
In true entrepreneurial form, Coakley and Roy were aiming to solve a daily dilemma of their own. Typical office environments leave a lot to be desired when it comes to the availability of healthy meals and snacks, and often overflow instead with sweets and all the other gluttonous grub that does nothing for one's waistline.
Inside every LeanBox are a variety of salads, wraps, frozen entrees, Greek yogurts, fruit cups, trail mixes and beverages, all for 500 calories or less. Each unit is altered depending on a company's needs, whether that means providing more vegan or paleo alternatives or offering additional salads, if that's what employees tend to reach for first.
"We have our own thoughts on what makes a healthy, balanced meal," Coakley acknowledged. "Yet, we also try and do our best to cater to everyone's definition of health."
Servicing is left entirely to LeanBox. The startup boasts real-time inventory of what's in every fridge at all times, as well as what the expiration date is on the foods stocked. Armed with that data, Coakley said they are able to ensure no meal goes to waste, because any entrees nearing that point get re-directed and donated. What's more, for every $10 spent at a LeanBox, the company donates the equivalent of one meal to the Greater Boston Food Bank.
The benefits stated, it's hardly a surprise LeanBox has been an easy sell. Coakley noted that businesses are doing whatever they can to create a healthier, happier work environment. Although just now launching out of beta, the team has already discovered LeanBox can make an effective, affordable impact on the life of an employee.
"I think every office should have a LeanBox," Coakley said. "I think the biggest issue to healthy eating is that it isn't right in people's path."
With LeanBox, however, there's no excuse not to eat healthy, given the necessary ingredients have the potential to be a mere 10 feet from someone's cubicle. "We know what we're doing with LeanBox," Coakley added. "We're providing 24/7, 365-days-a-year access to healthy food."
Beyond that, though, the team is striving to create a more convenient form of retail — one shying away from brick-and-mortar, yet not operating entirely in the online space. Coakley referenced the Best Buy vending machines you might find at airports, selling all the headphones, chargers, cameras or smartphones that you might have forgotten to pack. To Coakley, what Best Buy, and now LeanBox, is offering is a whole new version of convenience.
The company will continue concentrating in Boston, yet plans on spreading the LeanBox concept throughout the New England market. Coakley disclosed the company will be launching in two other cities over the course of the next six months, as well as close their first deal overseas.
After all, as Coakley reemphasized, "Our goal is to have a LeanBox in every corporate break room."
