Gousto: Cookstarter

Independent restaurants across the UK are the lifeblood of the UK's diverse and vibrant food culture. With so many of them at risk of closure due to the impact of the ongoing pandemic, today, Gousto, the UK’s leading recipe box provider is launching Cookstarter, a campaign designed to provide support to independent restaurants.

Cookstarter will see five independent restaurants, nominated by the public, receive £10,000 funding each, as well as a year-long programme of business coaching support spanningmarketing, finance, HR, SEO and social media. The programme will be delivered by a dedicated Board of Mentors at Gousto, put together by founder and CEO, Timo Boldt.

The Cookstarter campaign will also see the chefs of the five independent restaurants team up with Gousto’s recipe development team to co-create a recipe inspired by the restaurant’s menu. These recipes will be available to all Gousto customers in the UK, allowing the public to recreate the dishes at home and thereby widening the customer base and awareness of the restaurants.

Gousto subscribers who order a Cookstarter recipe will also be able to tip the restaurant’s teams through the cashless tipping solution TiPJAR, a digital tipping service. Gousto will also be encouraging donations to Hospitality Action, a charity that supports all workers in the hospitality sector.

To rally the public to participate during the nationwide search, Gousto has enlisted its long term brand ambassador and the nation’s PE teacher Joe Wicks MBE, along with chef and Chef and restaurateur Gizzi Erskine and comedian and foodie, Katherine Ryan. The trio will encourage Brits to nominate their favourite independent restaurants before 7 February. Independent restaurants are also encouraged to self-nominate during the search.