85255 - May 2006 - Sunfare

Press > 85255 - May 2006 - Sunfare

VANITY FAIR

Troon Village entrepreneur delivers “fast food” with a nutritious edge

TROON VILLAGE – John Stewart can’t remember why he was rummaging through his trash can in his Los Angeles office that day in 1997, but he still marvels at the serendipity of the moment.

Then a nutritionist who taught clients how to stay fit and healthy with good eating habits, Stewart’s exploration yielded a Post-It note that read, “Kimberly wants food.” Reminding himself to speak with the employee who tossed the note away, Stewart decided to call the customer himself.

“I told her we don’t do food, but suggested we get together to see how this can happen,” says Stewart, who knew there was a need for people to have food in their refrigerators that was not only balanced, but something they would enjoy eating.

Celebrity Factor

One man’s trash is another man’s business opportunity.  Because of the note, Stewart and co-owner Carl Ferro started Sunfare, a gourmet meal home-delivery service that provides nutritionally balanced, personalized meals for people without the time to do it themselves.  The young company was given a jumpstart when Kimberly’s husband turned out to be the president of Warner Bros. Studios.

After word got around about Sunfare, celebrity clients started ordering nutritional food, and the business took off.  Seven years later, in October 2004, Sunfare expanded its services to the Phoenix area.  Today the company has more than 6,000 clients, a team of gourmet chefs and a fleet of refrigerated deliver vans.

“We wanted to do business outside of California,” Stewart says.  “New York was our first choice, but we didn’t think we were capable of running a bi-coastal organization.  Phoenix was our next best bet as far as our demographics, which are essentially busy professionals and families who are health conscious, but don’t have the time to prepare the best nutritionally balanced meals.”

How It Works

Sunfare has more than 250 clients throughout the Valley who receive meals daily.  Three culinary chefs and 12 kitchen assistants begin preparing food at 7 a.m. at Sunfare’s kitchen, located at Seventh Avenue and Deer Valley Road in Phoenix.  At the end of the day, food is placed in a cooler, iced down and sealed.  Around 8 p.m., meal delivery begins and goes throughout the night.  The cooler is left at a client’s front door while they sleep, waiting for them in the morning.

Clients can manage their orders, view menus and make food selections online.  New clients go through every ingredient used in the kitchen and mark off the items they don’t like.  Then, Sunfare creates a personalized menu that keeps clients happy and healthy.

“”If you don’t like salmon and there’s salmon on your menu four times a month, then that’s four times that you’re more likely to hit the ‘golden arches,’” he says.

There are five plans to choose from, varying in cost from $29.95 for one dinner for a family of two, to $11.95 per person for a family of five, to an individual program that includes three meals and two snacks for $42.95 a day.  The plans are tailor-made to encourage fat loss, lower cholesterol and blood pressure, regulate sugar levels and control protein intake.

You Look Marvelous!

Mark Taylor, a 36-year-old mortgage broker at Scottsdale based Security Mortgage, has been receiving meals for more than three months.  A diabetic, Taylor has experienced better health since using Sunfare.

“Because of the way the meals are prepared and balanced, my blood sugar is stable,” Taylor says.  “I’m toning up and losing fat.  I feel a sense of well-being.  Before, because of my schedule, I was cramming in two big meals a day.  Now, I have five.  I feel like a million bucks.”

“I enjoy seeing our customers’ success,” Stewart says.  “There’s nothing better than getting a call and hearing, “John, I can fit into my skinny pants now!’”