Cloud Kitchen Revenue Model

A delivery-only sushi restaurant operating from a rented commissary kitchen, dramatically reducing startup costs compared to a traditional restaurant. Instead of a $300-500k buildout and 10-year lease, they paid $19/hour for kitchen space.

Key Points:

• Business Model:

  • Delivery-only restaurant (no physical location)
  • Rented commissary kitchen by the hour ($19/hour)
  • Focused on sushi delivery

• Customer Acquisition:

  • Floor-to-floor office building sales
  • Targeted office managers/front desk staff as key influencers
  • Offered free sample trays to offices that regularly ordered catering

• Sales Strategy:

  • Asked qualifying questions about office catering habits
  • Created risk-free offer (free sample tray)
  • Focused on bulk orders for office lunches

• Results:

  • Profitable from month one ($13 profit)
  • Reached ~$30,000 in revenue by first month
  • Operated for 3 months before pivoting
  • Realized delivery was the valuable part, not specifically sushi

• Key Learning:

  • The business model proved viable but team realized the delivery aspect was more valuable than the specific food type
  • Could have expanded to deliver various food types instead of just sushi