The Delivery Prophets

Bharti Radix is the founder of BloomsYard, a café bar concept she built from scratch during COVID-19, now spanning 8 sites. Drawing on her background as a finance executive at Jamie Oliver Restaurants, BrewDog, and beyond, Bharti shares how financial fluency shaped her lean, organic approach to growth – and why delivery, for all its promise, still has something to prove to her business.

In this episode, we discuss:

• How a finance career became the unexpected foundation for a hospitality business
• Why passion is the real driver behind surviving the hard times in hospitality
• The challenges small, independent café brands face on delivery platforms
• Corporate catering as an unplanned but thriving revenue stream
• Building inclusive communities around physical hospitality spaces

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What if the entire delivery revolution came down to one person who just wanted a decent meal brought to his door? That is essentially what happened. Will Shu, co-founder of Deliveroo, unpacks how delivery really began, why logistics is "shockingly complex," what the three sides of a delivery marketplace actually demand, and where drones, AI and dynamic pricing are taking the industry next.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Building Deliveroo from a personal need into a global delivery platform
• Balancing consumers, merchants and riders in a complex three-sided marketplace
• Using data, machine learning and dynamic pricing to optimise delivery logistics
• Trusting founder instinct while using data to make better decisions
• How AI, drones and changing consumer expectations could shape delivery’s future

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What happens when ChatGPT becomes your food ordering platform? The answer might transform how restaurants connect with customers forever.

In this week's minisode, Peter catches up with Bites founder Bala Subramaniam on their breakthrough as the first AI native food marketplace integrated into ChatGPT. Discover how restaurants are bypassing traditional delivery apps to offer conversational ordering that keeps control of margins and customer data in-house.

Links mentioned in this episode:

Bala Subramaniam on LinkedIn

Bites

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Sunny Chhina is the CEO and co-founder of The Fat Pizza, a rapidly expanding franchise operation opening one store per week across the UK. Starting in his family's Perfect Pizza business at age 12, Sunny has built a tech-forward delivery empire that combines traditional hospitality values with cutting-edge AI and automation. As chairman of the Pizza and Pasta Association, he shares insights on scaling through franchising, the future of delivery, and how family businesses can embrace innovation while maintaining their core essence.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Growing from family pizza shop roots to tech-forward franchise empire
• Using AI and automation to optimise delivery operations and menu personalisation  
• Franchising vs equity models and maintaining control while scaling rapidly
• The critical importance of volume and own-driver fleets in delivery success
• Balancing traditional hospitality values with modern technology innovation

Links mentioned in this episode:

Sunny Chhina on LinkedIn

Fat Pizza 

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In this episode of Delivery Prophets: Tech Smart, JP Then, founder of Slerp, joins us to reveal how restaurants are quietly taking back control – one direct order at a time. From inventing the sourdough doughnut at Crosstown to building tech that lets even small operators access delivery networks once reserved for the giants, JP shows how ‘unbundling’ from the marketplaces is reshaping the game for everyone, not just the big brands.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Unbundling delivery platforms and expanding restaurant options
• Rise of direct ordering channels and customer data ownership
• Technical and operational challenges of delivery integration
• Delivery’s shift from resistance to an essential revenue stream
• Increasing role of AI and digital efficiency in operations
• Future trends: innovation in transport and ongoing digital growth

Links mentioned in this episode:

Connect with JP on LinkedIn

Slerp

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In our second episode of Delivery Prophets: Tech Smart, we’re joined by Bala Subramaniam is the Founder of Bites, the AI-first restaurant marketplace built for POS providers and restaurants to reach diners directly across AI search.

Drawing on his experience at Instacart and Amazon, Bala exposes how aggregator apps took control during the chaos of COVID, driving up costs for both restaurants and families. But change is on the horizon – Bala reveals how AI, decentralisation, and empowered POS systems could give restaurants back their customers and their profits.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Post-pandemic power shifting from restaurants to aggregators
• How delivery tech is rapidly evolving and reshaping restaurant operations
• Current app models remain costly, inefficient and outdated
• AI poised to democratise ordering and streamline delivery
• Decentralised, POS-connected networks replacing traditional aggregators

Links mentioned in this episode:

Bala Subramaniam on LinkedIn

Bites

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Jeremy Hibbert-Garibaldi is the founder and CEO of Collectiv Food, a company focused on decarbonisation and automating supply chains for restaurants. Together, we explore the meaning of “value” in delivery – whether through the convenience offered to consumers or the efficiency streamlined for restaurants – and the profound differences between food delivery platforms and wholesale distributors.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Redefining value in food delivery services
• Comparing restaurant delivery vs wholesale distribution models
• Convenience as a key driver for operators and consumers
• Technology and automation reshaping food supply chains
• Sustainability and decarbonisation in delivery logistics

Links mentioned in this episode:

Jeremy Hibbert-Garibaldi on LinkedIn

Collectiv Food

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In this minisode of The Delivery Prophets, Peter Backman chats with Charles Brafman, founder of &Dine – the fast-growing marketplace redefining how London’s businesses eat. From office lunches to high-end events, &Dine is connecting companies with independent food vendors, giving street-food chefs and small operators a powerful new route to scale.

Charles lifts the lid on what makes the UK catering market so different from the US, how indie food brands can thrive in the B2B space, and why the next big opportunity might just be corporate dining.

Tune into the full episode here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3C7MbCYxHm1ap5JI8jMzic

Welcome to the first ever Delivery Prophets: Tech Smart, brought to you by TheDelivery.World in partnership with S4D.

In this conversation, host Peter Backman sits down with Benjamin Kool, CEO and founder of S4D, to examine the fast-changing world of food delivery technology. Together, they explore the pressures and opportunities facing restaurants as the global delivery market continues to surge, from navigating first-party versus third-party logistics to leveraging data as a driver of growth and competitive edge.

Benjamin shares how S4D was founded to give restaurants back control of the customer journey, and why seamless omnichannel experiences are critical to staying ahead. If you’re looking to understand where food delivery tech is headed, and how to position your business for what’s next, this episode is for you.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Shifting from third-party to first-party delivery
• Omnichannel delivery’s hidden challenges and real payoffs
• Why the right tech partners unlock operational innovation
• AI in restaurants: early adoption, lasting impact
• Why delivery markets aren’t the same everywhere
• Profitability vs. control: the delivery model trade-off

Links mentioned in this episode:

S4D

Connect with Benjamin Kool on LinkedIn

Restaurant & Takeaway Expo/ Hospitality Tech Expo

Attend Benjamin Kool’s Talk @ Restaurant & Takeaway Expo / Hospitality Tech Expo 2025

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Gavin Smith from Pizza Pilgrims returns to the show to share how Pizza Pilgrims has navigated the ups and downs of the past year, from tackling rising costs and competitive pressures to the strategic move of appointing a dedicated delivery manager to drive growth on platforms like Deliveroo. The trio explore the challenges and opportunities in maintaining a great brand experience, both in-restaurant and through delivery, and get candid about topics like price parity, packaging innovations, and future trends like catering.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Importance of clarity, communication, and win-win outcomes in delivery
• How Pizza Pilgrims drives delivery growth through dedicated leadership
• Leveraging data, tech, and ad spend to enhance delivery performance
• Managing delivery ratios and the impact on restaurant team welfare
• Packaging innovations to solve cold pizza issues
• Maturing delivery market: competition, exclusivity, and future collaborations

Links mentioned in this episode:

Gavin Smith on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hospitalitygav/ 

Pizza Pilgrims: https://www.pizzapilgrims.co.uk/ 

Adapting to Demands: Pizza Pilgrims' Approach to Delivery with Gavin Smith: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWLniOoZv1A 

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