CHICAGO, March 1, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In recognition
of Women's History Month, Grubhub is strengthening and expanding
its commitment to grow the number of women-led restaurants,
especially those impacted by COVID. It was four years ago with the
creation of RestaurantHER that Grubhub first started using its
technology platform to drive change and respond to the issues
facing women in the restaurant industry. The company pledged to
champion and support women-led restaurants, raise awareness about
inequality in the industry and help improve things for the
better.
As Grubhub kicks off its fourth year of RestaurantHER, we're
working with World Central Kitchen (WCK) and the Women Business
Collaborative (WBC) to support and help amplify our ongoing efforts
for women in the culinary industry.
RestaurantHER comes this year as women have lost the most jobs
during the pandemic. In January 2021,
women were still down 5.4 million jobs, which makes up 55 percent
of total jobs lost. The restaurant industry was among those most
impacted by COVID, and a majority of the workforce are women.
Before COVID, female restaurant workers (especially owners and
chefs) struggled to grow due to lack of sponsorship, funding and
even workplace harassment. As a result, there are fewer women at
the leadership level in restaurants. And now those numbers are
dwindling even further.
"We are hopeful that across the country, RestaurantHER will
spark a movement of support for women-owned and operated
restaurants," said Devry Boughner
Vorwerk, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at Grubhub. "Women
restaurateurs are highly capable business leaders in the industry,
and they often face barriers that their male counterparts do not.
This month, and every month, at Grubhub, we want to shine a light
on women-led restaurants and all the benefits these women bring to
their communities through their dedication, their creativity and
their cuisine."
Since Grubhub began the RestaurantHER initiative in 2018, we've
seen talented and aspiring chefs who have been able to succeed in
part because of the resources and programs of RestaurantHER. Our
incredible partners and diners have played a significant role in
helping Grubhub work toward change. We worked with organizations
such as the James Beard Foundation and Women Chefs &
Restaurateurs to provide grants and tools for female chefs and
culinary leaders to navigate and address the specific challenges
they face in the industry. Additionally, Grubhub created a
RestaurantHER map where diners can find a women-led restaurant near
them.
To continue our efforts, Grubhub is supporting World Central
Kitchen's Restaurants for the People program and specifically
restaurants that are women-owned and operated. Grubhub will support
these efforts through the Donate the Change program during Women's
History Month, where diners are invited to join us in helping these
women. Grubhub's Donate the Change feature allows diners who opt-in
to round up their change on every order. All proceeds will go to
World Central Kitchen to provide nourishing meals to help
vulnerable communities impacted by the pandemic. Last year, Grubhub
diners across the country generously donated a total of
$21 million to support various
organizations and communities in need through Donate the
Change.
"We are grateful for Grubhub's support and belief in our
mission, and recognition that restaurants are a key part of the
solution to the ongoing health, economic, and humanitarian crises.
Their support will specifically help women-owned and operated
restaurants that are a part of our Restaurants for the People
program, which pays restaurants directly to help keep their
business afloat while also providing tens of thousands of meals to
people in need," said Erin Gore,
Vice President of Development at World Central Kitchen.
Grubhub is also excited to kick off a partnership with the Women
Business Collaborative, an alliance of more than 44 women business
organizations and thousands of individuals who are committed to
gender equality in the workplace. Together, we'll raise awareness
and encourage Americans to support local women-owned restaurants
throughout the month of March and throughout the year. We'll also
form an advisory board in 2021 composed of female restaurant owners
to discuss issues in the industry and ways Grubhub and others can
help.
"The time is now for all of us to commit to order from
women-owned restaurants and tell the stories of our support in
every community across this nation. We are devoted to this effort
with RestaurantHER and Grubhub," added Edie
Fraser, CEO of Women Business Collaborative.
World Central Kitchen will also be Grubhub's donation partner
for our popular virtual concert series Sound Bites, which will
feature performances by Megan Thee
Stallion, Noah Cyrus and King
Princess. Fans tuning in will be encouraged to scan customized QR
codes that will pop up throughout the show to receive special
discounts and Perks, along with exclusive behind-the-scenes footage
from King Princess. For every QR code scanned at one point during
the live stream, Grubhub will donate $1 (up to $100,000)
to World Central Kitchen. The free Sound Bites concert will take
place on Friday, March 26 at
7 p.m. ET on the Grubhub
YouTube channel.
Grubhub's commitment to support women in the restaurant industry
will continue as long as it takes to see equality, and we hope our
community of diners will join us by supporting female chefs and
owners, and their delicious culinary creations, year-round. Visit
the Grubhub app, Grubhub.com or RestaurantHER.com to find a
women-led restaurant near you.
About Grubhub
Grubhub (NYSE: GRUB) is a leading online
and mobile food-ordering and delivery marketplace with the largest
and most comprehensive network of restaurant partners, as well as
over 31 million active diners. Dedicated to connecting diners with
the food they love from their favorite local restaurants, Grubhub
elevates food ordering through innovative restaurant technology,
easy-to-use platforms and an improved delivery experience. Grubhub
features over 300,000 restaurants and is proud to partner with over
265,000 of these restaurants in over 4,000 U.S. cities. The Grubhub
portfolio of brands includes Grubhub, Seamless, LevelUp, AllMenus
and MenuPages.
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SOURCE Grubhub Inc.