Parisian foodie and Woop! founder Thomas Dietz topped an incredible five-year journey with the Westpac Auckland Business Awards when Woop! won the Supreme Business Excellence Award.
The best in Auckland business gathered for a gala celebration to round out the 2020 Awards programme, run by the Auckland Business Chamber.
Woop!, a meal-kit delivery service, has been on an amazing awards trajectory, aligned with their growth over the years, and were one of the few businesses to have an opportunity to seize and thrive during the pandemic and New Zealand lockdowns last year.
Their long history with the Awards programme has seen them win Best Emerging Business in 2017, both in the Central Region and at Best of the Best, and two years later, win the 2019 Excellence in Marketing category, again both in the Central Region and at Best of the Best. That year they were also Central Region finalists in Excellence in Customer Service Delivery and Excellence in Strategy and Planning.
Now, they’re heading home with the big one!
Dietz launched Woop! in 2015 ready to take on My Food Bag and Hello Fresh, the original players in the meal box sector. Five years on, they now employ over 200 people involved in preparing and delivering meal kits nation-wide.
The meals are aimed at those who want to eat healthy, tasty food and still complete some elements of the cooking process but don’t have the time or energy to prepare large meals every evening.
As a chef does so in a restaurant, Woop! prepares all the food by dicing fresh, locally sourced vegetables, pre-cutting meats, and preparing sauces so all that customers need to do is combine the elements together and have world-class meals on their table shortly after getting home from a busy day.
Woop! (World On Our Plate), reflects Dietz’s passion for food and his own experiences in the kitchen. “Being French, we tend to always put a lot of attention on meals. I’m quite busy myself, so I always find that during the week I never have time to cook”
Alas, Woop! was born. Dietz has lived in Japan, Korea, China and South America so an obvious point of difference for his product was to offer freshness of ingredients alongside international tastes.
The company has grown steadily since its inception but did particularly well in the past 12 months including during the height of the Covid-19 lockdown. Unsurprisingly, there was a rapid increase in demand for foodkit delivery.
At the onset of the pandemic, Woop! doubled the number of food deliveries and recruited 39 new staff. They also introduced new initiatives to help customers get through being confined to home including cocktail kits, baking kits, and surprise treats.
Dietz said “The team are amazed. Winning this award is incredibly humbling. I still remember being here all those years ago before we started winning. It’s fantastic to now finally have done it!”
The announcement capped an already successful evening for Woop! after they won the Excellence in Strategy and Planning category earlier in the night.
Auckland Business Chamber Chief Executive Michael Barnett congratulated Woop! on their success.
Powered by “Woop! have used the Westpac Awards to measure and review their performance over the last five years.
The story behind the company’s progress to the top has been told through their journey through the Awards programme.
“They have shown resilience and innovation through both stable and unprecedented times and are deserving winners. It is important they are recognised.”
