By the end of the year, the ready-to-eat specialist will have delivered 4 million meals in Quebec and Ontario. In Alberta, the new 20,000 square foot facility, in addition to those in Saint-Hyacinthe and Dorval, will create 400 jobs over the next two years.
Étienne Plourde, co-founder and CEO of WeCook, does not hide it: he wants to become the Canadian leader in prepared meals. The dishes he sells, once delivered to the consumer’s doorstep, are ready in two minutes, the time it takes to reheat them. “Of course we had to put a foot [dans l’Ouest canadien] », He underlined during an interview with Press. According to him, the demand was there.
Calgary is really a place [central] for the delivery. You can deliver to Red Deer, Edmonton, Regina. There is also Vancouver where we can deliver.
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Étienne Plourde, CEO of WeCook
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Then, in early 2023, WeCook – headquartered in Dorval – will move to Ontario. The company is already making deliveries to the neighboring province, but Mr. Plourde believes that a factory there will greatly facilitate operations. “The plan is most likely to open a factory in Toronto. Having a direct footing in Toronto makes it even easier, logistically. ”
Craze still present
In addition, Étienne Plourde ensures that the relaxation of sanitary measures and the opening of dining rooms have not had an impact on the sales of ready-to-eat meals. “We continued to grow. According to its predictions, sales in 2021 will increase by about 150% to 200% from 2020. Last year, the company recorded increases of more than 300%. WeCook currently has 35,000 active members. Remember that the company co-founded by Étienne Plourde in 2013 was called Nutrition Fit Plus. It changed its name to WeCook in 2020.
For the future, WeCook intends to “raise the gastronomic level of the prepared dish”. To do this, the company has just appointed Gabriel Drapeau, who was previously head chef of the Joe Beef group, as head of culinary operations. “I think Gabriel had gone around the restaurant business a bit. He wanted to have a different challenge. Prepared food is completely different from catering, ”recalls Étienne Plourde.
“The fast food industry is now respected, which may not have been the case before,” he said. The dishes prepared before were quite a steak-wheat-India-potatoes, lasagna, spaghetti with bolognese sauce, ”he lists, adding in the process that the dishes have become more refined.
After a few months at the Dorval facility, Gabriel Drapeau will be responsible for opening the production plant in Calgary.
Another project for the company: the launch of a meal offer for lunch. Then, WeCook intends to do more advertising on TV and radio, in particular.
Does the company also plan to sell its meals in supermarkets? Not in the short term, answers Étienne Plourde. He really wants WeCook to be “well established” before embarking on the retail adventure. Rather, it aims for 2024.
WeCook in brief
Foundation: 2013 (under the name Nutrition Fit Plus)
The head office : Dorval
Installations : Dorval (625 employees) and Saint-Hyacinthe (6 employees)
Future : Calgary (summer 2022) and Toronto (2023)
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Nathaelle Morissette
Press
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By the end of the year, the ready-to-eat specialist will have delivered 4 million meals in Quebec and Ontario. In Alberta, the new 20,000 square foot facility, in addition to those in Saint-Hyacinthe and Dorval, will create 400 jobs over the next two years.
Étienne Plourde, co-founder and CEO of WeCook, does not hide it: he wants to become the Canadian leader in prepared meals. The dishes he sells, once delivered to the consumer’s doorstep, are ready in two minutes, the time it takes to reheat them. “Of course we had to put a foot [dans l’Ouest canadien] », He underlined during an interview with Press. According to him, the demand was there.
Calgary is really a place [central] for the delivery. You can deliver to Red Deer, Edmonton, Regina. There is also Vancouver where we can deliver.
–
Étienne Plourde, CEO of WeCook
–
Then, in early 2023, WeCook – headquartered in Dorval – will move to Ontario. The company is already making deliveries to the neighboring province, but Mr. Plourde believes that a factory there will greatly facilitate operations. “The plan is most likely to open a factory in Toronto. Having a direct footing in Toronto makes it even easier, logistically. ”
Craze still present
In addition, Étienne Plourde ensures that the relaxation of sanitary measures and the opening of dining rooms have not had an impact on the sales of ready-to-eat meals. “We continued to grow. According to its predictions, sales in 2021 will increase by about 150% to 200% from 2020. Last year, the company recorded increases of more than 300%. WeCook currently has 35,000 active members. Remember that the company co-founded by Étienne Plourde in 2013 was called Nutrition Fit Plus. It changed its name to WeCook in 2020.
For the future, WeCook intends to “raise the gastronomic level of the prepared dish”. To do this, the company has just appointed Gabriel Drapeau, who was previously head chef of the Joe Beef group, as head of culinary operations. “I think Gabriel had gone around the restaurant business a bit. He wanted to have a different challenge. Prepared food is completely different from catering, ”recalls Étienne Plourde.
“The fast food industry is now respected, which may not have been the case before,” he said. The dishes prepared before were quite a steak-wheat-India-potatoes, lasagna, spaghetti with bolognese sauce, ”he lists, adding in the process that the dishes have become more refined.
After a few months at the Dorval facility, Gabriel Drapeau will be responsible for opening the production plant in Calgary.
Another project for the company: the launch of a meal offer for lunch. Then, WeCook intends to do more advertising on TV and radio, in particular.
Does the company also plan to sell its meals in supermarkets? Not in the short term, answers Étienne Plourde. He really wants WeCook to be “well established” before embarking on the retail adventure. Rather, it aims for 2024.
WeCook in brief
Foundation: 2013 (under the name Nutrition Fit Plus)
The head office : Dorval
Installations : Dorval (625 employees) and Saint-Hyacinthe (6 employees)
Future : Calgary (summer 2022) and Toronto (2023)
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