Hospitality food wholesale marketplace FoodByUs has expanded into the $2 billion liquor sector, signing top wholesale suppliers including The Liquor Co-Op, National Liquor Wholesalers, Shorty’s Liquor, S&P Liquor, Monacellars, My Liquor Online, BoozeBud, and Akasha Brewery.

The marketplace aims be a ‘one stop procurement shop’ for small-to-medium-sized hospitality businesses, giving them the ability to search and compare the market to access the buying power normally reserved for much larger businesses.

Independent Liquor Group (ILG) opened The Liquor Co-op in Bacchus Marsh in 2018. The store acts as a retail outlet, a wholesaler and a place to trial new initiatives and consumer offerings.

Ben Braun, Retail Services & Sales Manager at ILG, said joining FoodByUs had given the distributor access to more than 1000 restaurants, pubs, clubs, RSLs, hotels and venues.

“We love FoodByUs as we see it as a great additional channel to the on-premise market,” he said. “With their buyer network and sales team, we can easily grow and increase our sales, with the added benefit of guaranteed payment meaning minimum risk.

“The economy is hurting when small businesses cannot operate, we are more than happy to boost the economy and community back to what it was through service and product availability, our business model is geared to support the small business operator through our national buying power.”

Craft spirits have proven the most popular with FoodByUs customers using ILG to date.

“Clubs are looking for small batch spirits to differentiate themselves,” Braun said. “Any new products that have picked up popularity throughout lockdown, we are looking to capitalise on these new trends.”

FoodByUs celebrates 600% growth

Started by several Menulog founders in 2016, FoodByUs currently connects thousands of restaurants, cafes and caterers with hundreds of wholesale food suppliers on a single platform. Unique features include one-tap price comparison, digital issue resolution, best-in-class search and Xero integration for a seamless experience.

The platform has grown 600% in annual sales since 2019 and continues to accelerate at about 12.5% MoM in an industry down 90%, which has led the way for its expansion into the alcohol sector.

Ben Lipschitz, co-founder and Managing Director of FoodByUs (pictured main with co-founder Tim Chandler), said: “FoodByUs was built on the premise of using technology for good. Our platform helps hospitality businesses get back time spent on tedious admin and accounting tasks while increasing profitability. When these businesses can access a wider range of suppliers and best-in-market pricing, the whole industry benefits.

“The greater the number of categories clients use, the more our technology demonstrates its value. Alcohol is such a big component of the dining experience, so we’re pleased to expand our offering to help business owners make better informed choices when ordering by making it easier for them to find the best deals in the market. We are positive that with the addition of alcohol to our marketplace, our network of buyers and sellers will continue to grow, enjoying both the benefits of our technology and what our service offers.”

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