The challenge
Factor 75, the US ready-to-eat meal business owned by HelloFresh, lives and dies by its menu.
Subscribers expect fresh excitement every week, across a widening range of dietary needs, and that puts relentless pressure on the recipe database behind the service. Factor commissioned us to help accelerate its growth:
keeping consumers excited, keeping the menu diverse, and keeping engagement strong across multiple dietary requirements. The first stage of the brief was a controlled development sprint of 25 recipes, integrating seamlessly into Factor’s existing development and validation process. The longer-term ambition was bigger: design a scalable programme for rapid recipe creation and ongoing portfolio expansion. In effect, the sprint was both a deliverable and an audition for a much larger way of working.
What we did
Strategic consultancy, a fast-paced development sprint and process integration.
How we did it
Some projects can be run from a desk in the UK. This was not one of them. Our development team travelled to Chicago and worked as internal implants inside Factor’s own development facility, cooking, testing and refining alongside their chefs rather than at arm’s length. That choice mattered. Recipe development for a meal subscription business is shaped by the realities of the kitchen, the supply chain and the production line,
and you only learn those by standing in them.
The brief was demanding by design. Twenty-five recipes, each adhering
to strict dietary guidelines alongside tight ingredient, operational and
cost parameters.
Within those constraints the team developed GLP-1, keto and low carb offerings, proving that meals built for specific dietary needs can still be dishes people genuinely look forward to eating. Great food first, dietary compliance built in, never the other way round.
Just as importantly, the sprint was a working test of the partnership itself. Delivering inside Factor’s facility allowed us to validate ways of working, unlock efficiencies and establish clear points of integration with their existing chef team, so external development strengthens the internal operation rather than sitting awkwardly beside it.
View more case studies
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Factor 75
Factor 75 needed rapid recipe development across multiple dietary requirements while integrating seamlessly with their existing process. FIS Group embedded a development team inside Factor's Chicago facility, delivering 25 compliant recipes across GLP-1, keto and low carb requirements and establishing a scalable model for ongoing portfolio expansion.
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