After receiving new private equity backing, Houston-based HungerRush wants to accelerate its growth.
HungerRush, which develops software products for restaurant point-of-sale systems, digital ordering and more, has grown to around 800 team members across the organization, including 500 full-time employees and hundreds of developers in offshore locations. HungerRush CEO Perry Turbes, who previously led Houston-based oil and gas technology firm Quorum Software as CEO, said HungerRush has roughly 250 employees based in its Houston headquarters.
HungerRush is working with a broker to identify a possible new office space in the Houston region, Turbes said. The firm is currently headquartered at 1315 W. Sam Houston Parkway N., near Memorial City.
Earlier this summer, New York-based private equity firm Corsair announced acquiring a majority stake in HungerRush from Houston-based The CapStreet Group, which continued as a minority investor in HungerRush.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Turbes said gaining the backing of Corsair will help HungerRush better navigate the changing restaurant market, which is moving fast and being disrupted with technology.
"Access to that talent and that capital at a larger scale is really important for us as a business as we continue to grow, scale and offer differentiated solutions back to the end customers," Turbes said.
Inorganic growth through mergers and acquisitions has been a focus for HungerRush in the past. The company gobbled up two acquisitions last year: New York-based online ordering and digital marketing company 9Fold and Leawood, Kansas-based Menufy, which focuses on e-commerce and restaurant point-of-sale systems. As a result of the Menufy deal, HungerRush now has around 150 employees based in the Kansas City area.
HungerRush also acquired OrderAI, a provider of text and voice ordering technology, in late 2020. Through M&A, the tech company wanted to acquire and integrate any kind of digital ordering or customer marketing capabilities the HungerRush platform didn't already have, Turbes said.
Looking ahead, Turbes said there's still a huge opportunity for consolidation in the restaurant tech space. HungerRush remains interested in adding capabilities through attractive M&A opportunities.
"We'll spend more time on things like analytics, more marketing [and] inventory," Turbes said. "Obviously if a new digital channel becomes available, we're going to pursue those opportunities."
Turbes said HungerRush is a comprehensive point-of-sale payment platform for pizza, fast-casual and quick-service restaurants. The firm's core target market are small- to mid-market restaurant chains with five to 60 units, but HungerRush does work with independent operators and large chains with hundreds of units.
Turbes joined HungerRush as CEO in April 2019. He left Quorum Software in late 2018 after nearly two decades with the company.
