Jon Carter, CEO and Founder of Prado: $5.7 Million Raised to Improve Fresh Food Accessibility Nationwide

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Jon Carter, CEO and Founder of Prado, an e-commerce operating platform that's raised $5.7 Million in funding, about the challenges of chasing efficiency in the meal-plan industry, and how data can help transform the space. With a one-stop software solution covering everything from web hosting and customer fulfilment to automation for kitchen operations, Prado powers-up the entire backend of a meal delivery business. We also speak about Jon’s career background between contemporary health issues and the online catering sector, Prado’s initial focus on meal-prep firms and expanding across the industry, the importance of customer pain points and the intersection of meal plans and meaningful health outcomes. Topics Discussed: Prado’s origin story and the challenges confronting contemporary food service firms dealing with perishable products and complex logistics The personal experience which led Jon to focus on the intersection of health, food-prep and technology Jon’s vision of outsourcing nutrition to a trusted third partner, and Prado claiming their ‘share of stomach’ How an initial focus specifically on meal-prep firms expanded into  sector-wide support for firms across the catering sector Why Prado keeps their focus on real-world pain points rather than creating categories for their clients   Favorite book: The Practice of Groundedness: A Transformative Path to Success That Feeds--Not Crushes--Your Soul