‘Let’s hail a meal’: China’s Home Cook offers a sharing economy solution for the kitchen
![Home Cook’s chief operating officer Shao Kai says the company has 2 million registered users and typically sees around 50,000 orders transact per day at an average unit price of 50 yuan [US$7.26]. Photo: SCMP Handout](https://cdn.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/styles/1200x800/public/images/methode/2017/04/04/5996c64c-1923-11e7-b4ed-ac719e54b474_1280x720_191951.JPG?itok=V-LMLWKr)
With well-equipped technology and a positive attitude towards the sharing economy, anyone can hail a car or rent a house. But have you ever thought about ordering a home-style meal served up by a stranger?
Chinese start-up Home Cook is seeking to put a new twist on the sharing economy by providing a community marketplace for home-made meals.
The Beijing-based company helps “hosts” or cooks, share their culinary creations with buyers using the Home Cook (回家吃飯) app.
Founded in October 2014 by former Alibaba area manager Tang Wanli, Home Cook operates in six Chinese cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen. Currently 23,000 hosts have registered. Those who sign up must use their real names and provide proof that they have completed training and certification to prepare home-cooked meals.
“Home Cook receives fewer than 50,000 orders per day and the unit price is above 50 yuan [US$7.26],” Shao Kai, chief operating officer of Home Cook said in an interview with the South China Morning Post. “We can earn one yuan from every order but have not achieved profitability due to operation costs.”
Home Cook has around two million registered users, made up primarily of white-collar workers, and other members of the community who are unable to cook at home. About 100,000 users are active on any single day.