Goodbye…
That s how SpoonRocket, the on-demand food delivery service based in Berkeley, began its announcement to its customers Tuesday that it had closed.
The 3-year-old company that advertised itself as the food button on your phone was notable for its red-flagged cars delivering meals throughout the San Francisco Bay Area.
But on Tuesday, the company said it was a victim of bad timing:
The downturn of market and lack of interest in on-demand companies like SpoonRocket from the venture community has forced us to shut down prematurely before we are able to grow into a viable business.
SpoonRocket customers will be offered a $10 discount from Sprig, an on-demand meal delivery firm in San Francisco.
SpoonRocket, which made and delivered its own meals, struggled with an increasingly crowded market. As well as Sprig, there is Munchery and Bento.
DoorDash, PostMates, UberEats, GrubHub and Yelp s Eat24 deliver directly from restaurants.
Google Express, Amazon Prime Fresh and Instacart will all get groceries to your front door. And this partial list doesn t include companies like Purple Carrot and Blue Apron that deliver meal ingredients and recipes.
TechCrunch reported that SpoonRocket had reached contribution positive margin, an important milestone.
What s that? The company was selling meals at price more than it cost to make them. But SpoonRocket found it difficult to raise money or find a buyer.
Now, the company is putting away the red flags and closing its doors.
Above: Screenshot from SpoonRocket s website.
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