A Louisville-based restaurant software company has launched a Wefunder campaign to make it easier for independent restaurants to join its platform.
Jaspal Singh, co-founder and CEO of DiningTek, said his company hopes to raise $124,000 through Wefunder so it can reduce or eliminate onboarding fees for 1,000 restaurants in five states. Wefunder is a crowdfunding platform that connects startups with investors online.
"The idea here is that we want to offer a discount to independently owned restaurants," Singh explained. "If we charge them a very high onboarding fee, then I don't think they can come to our system as fast. So, we need some capital to onboard them quicker."
DiningTek provides marketing automation, branding and online sales services under one platform for restaurants, cafes, food trucks and food wholesalers. Singh said onboarding can cost up to $750, depending on the services they choose.
So far, DiningTek has raised about $40,000 through its Wefunder campaign. A simple agreement for future equity (SAFE) note gives investors the right to shares of the company once it reaches a $6 million valuation.
Singh said the money from the campaign will be used to spur growth in Illinois, Wisconsin, Colorado, Kentucky and Indiana.
"We have tons and tons of leads available. It's just we need money to onboard them," he added. "If we raise $124,000, we are hoping that we can help 200 restaurants in five states. We already offer independently owned restaurants significantly lower prices compared to our competitors."
Singh co-founded DiningTek in 2018 with Linda Carlson, a former co-worker with a marketing background. The company started in Broomfield, Colorado, with five customers — restaurants owned by Singh's close family and friends. But today, it has more than 300 customers in Colorado, Wisconsin, Illinois and Wyoming.
DiningTek moved its headquarters to Kentucky in 2021 after being named one of eight winners of a startup competition sponsored by Render Capital. The contestants each received a $100,000 investment, but as a stipulation, they were required to relocate to the Louisville or Southern Indiana region.
The company has offices in Broomfield, Louisville and New Albany, Indiana, with about 20 employees between them. It reported more than $600,000 in revenue in 2021, which represented 100% year-over-year growth.
DiningTek was one of three early-stage companies picked for the first cohort of Endeavor's 2022 Scale Up program. The non-dilutive, five-month accelerator aims to support high-potential, fast-growth entrepreneurs by giving them access to resources, successful founders and mentors in Endeavor’s regional network to scale to the next level.
DiningTek also announced last week that it has integrated its system with OrderMark, a menu management company. This partnership allows restaurant to manage all incoming orders in one place, whether it's pick-up or delivery.
"As a company, they do the order consolidations," Singh said. "All the delivery service company orders, they come to OrderMark with one tablet, one printer. They have a few thousand customers. So, DiningTek online orders could also come in the same tablet and printer. It's a good integration opportunity for us to help each other's customer base."
Singh said DiningTek is in the early stages of launching its own marketplace so that the company can become a one-stop shop for people who want to patronize local restaurants.
"We are hoping that with the new marketplace launch, in next two to three months, we could cross the 1,000 restaurant threshold," Singh said. "Because in the marketplace, the onboarding is very fast. And we already have those restaurants in pipeline."
