Meal kit startup HelloFresh has made its first profit in the UK after more than doubling its workforce and sales over the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Berlin-based business’ turnover increased by 140 per cent to £255 million, while pre-tax profit was up by almost £14 million from last year’s £1.49 million loss.
It scrambled to scale up production over 2020, hiring 335 new staff and opening a second factory in Nuneaton six months ago.
Last month, chief executive Dominik Richter admitted HelloFresh had been hit by “capacity constraints” and needed to “de-bottleneck”.
READ MORE: Gousto meals cut supermarket CO2 by 23%, study reveals
Likely as a result of this investment, the UK arm’s profit margin fell from 28 per cent to 23 per cent.
Before 2020, it had suffered six consecutive years of pre-tax losses which totalled around £40 million.
Covid-19 has proved a windfall for meal kit companies, with London-headquartered Gousto also turning its first profit in 2020.
Chief executive Timo Boldt hailed a “transformational year” as revenues leapt by 129 per cent to £189 million.
Like HelloFresh, Gousto planned to raise production by doubling its workforce to 2000 staff and opening new warehouses in Essex and Cheshire.
