Circus — What is behind the Flink co-founder's food tech company?

Key Insights

• 0:00:08 Introduction: Food-tech company Circus and guest Nikolas Bullwinkel0:04:57 Market overview: Food delivery and the positioning of Circus0:07:11 Labor shortage in the restaurant industry0:09:19 Circus: A new concept for the restaurant industry0:13:50 Plans for the future: From pasta to bowls, curries and more0:19:16 Share of technology and distribution of employees0:23:39 Unit economics and infrastructure in restaurant operations0:26:26 Focus on a good product before expansion and franchising0:29:03 Pros and cons of a franchise model0:31:42 Using different channels for customer acquisition and expansion

About Kassenzone

E-commerce is a topic close to the heart of Etribes managing director Karo Junker de Neui. That's why Kassenzone podcast host Alexander Graf didn't have to ask twice whether she would like to regularly take over the most successful German podcast on e-commerce and digitalization for individual episodes. Every week, CEOs from retailers, brands and manufacturers talk about their unique business models and e-commerce strategies. In “Kassenzone mit Karo,” Karo would like to take a look at the future in particular and discuss upcoming macro trends and changes under the motto “E-Commerce 2030.”

Intro

Just recently, the Hamburg-based Circus Group led by CEO Nikolas Bullwinkel attracted media attention when it went public with a direct listing in January. Together with podcast host Karo, the former Flink and Pickery co-founder takes a look in this episode at the future of the restaurant industry and discusses how digitalization and automation can help overcome the current challenges in the restaurant business. Circus has set itself the goal of revolutionizing the traditional restaurant business by establishing a fully automated restaurant kitchen model. With the help of specially developed kitchen robots, standardized cooking processes in microhubs and the digitalization of largely all processes with its own software, Circus wants to offer low-cost meals and counteract the shortage of staff in the restaurant industry. With three test locations in Hamburg and Cologne, as well as an R&D center in Munich and a tech hub in Berlin, the company is still in the pre-growth phase and focuses primarily on the development of robotics and the expansion of the dishes to be produced. Only when all processes have been optimized and refined does the company want to focus on expanding its product portfolio and locations and expanding internationally. Nikolas and Karo shed light on where the Hamburg-based food tech company currently stands, which challenges they have to overcome and what vision the concept is pursuing. Nikolas also reacts to the critical voices regarding the young company's unit economics, which were published as part of the direct listing.

Circus' strategy focuses on the development of fully automated kitchens that are to produce high-quality food cost-effectively in microhubs in the future. In the long term, the company wants to produce and deliver various concepts such as pasta, bowls and curries at its sites. The data obtained about customers' eating habits is then meant to make it possible to personalize and adjust the dishes. After Circus received media attention in January 2024 due to its direct listing on the stock exchange, the company figures and development were also examined more closely by other experts and podcasts. In the interview, Niko explains that Circus is currently still in the development phase and that the figures cannot therefore be compared with classic delivery concepts. 60% of the company's employees currently work in the areas of engineering, data, AI and automation, and only a few employees are operationally active in the test kitchens. Circus takes an agile approach and invests in the development of the next generation of kitchen robots as well as the further development and testing of its own software. Only when the technological setup is fully mature and enough recipe variations can be implemented with the second-generation robots does Nikolas want to start expanding in Germany and abroad. In order to implement the vision of low-cost delivery food from fully automated kitchens in urban areas as quickly as possible, Circus is also considering a franchise concept for countries or regions.

Summary

1. 0:00:08 Introduction to food-tech company Circus and guest Nikolas Bullwinkel
2. 0:04:57 Market overview of food delivery and the positioning of Circus
3. 0:07:11 Labor shortage in the restaurant industry
4. 0:09:19 Circus as a new concept for the restaurant industry
5. 0:13:50 Plans for the future, from pasta to bowls, curries and more
6. 0:19:16 Share of technology and distribution of employees
7. 0:23:39 Unit economics and infrastructure in restaurant operations
8. 0:26:26 Focus on a good product before expansion and franchising
9. 0:29:03 Pros and cons of a franchise model
10. 0:31:42 Using different channels for customer acquisition and expansion

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