Menufy sale scales HungerRush to more than 500 workers, 20,000 restaurants, KC co-founder says
October 27, 2021 | Channa Steinmetz
Growth isn’t new to the menu for Menufy’s Leawood based team, said Sharmil Desai, noting the online platform for restaurants had grown to 140 employees before its freshly announced acquisition by HungerRush.
“I can’t think of any point when Menufy has not been adding and expanding,” Desai, co-founder and CEO of Menufy, told Startland News. “We’ve always been bringing in new hires, so we’ve gotten used to managing a company with a growing team. The team here is used to change.”
Click here to read more about why Menufy sold to HungerRush, a Houston-based cloud software provider for the restaurant industry.
Menufy announced Tuesday that its e-commerce platform for restaurant ordering will be incorporated into the HungerRush 360 cloud point-of-sale (POS) system — which is complementary to solutions already offered by Menufy.
Details of the acquisition deal were not disclosed. The local team is expected to operate under the “Menufy by HungerRush” brand.
“We covered two different parts of the market with HungerRush being more mid-market and us being more SMB [small and midsize business] focused,” Desai explained. “We saw a lot of strengths that would be good for us and for both of the combined businesses.”
“When you look at the combined businesses, the scale is impressive,” he continued, noting the 20,000 restaurants under the unified company. “The team now has over 500 employees.”
Click here to read more about how Menufy grew its operations with a diverse team built in Kansas City.
Although the company didn’t release specific hiring plans, Kansas City can expect to see more local job openings, Desai said.
“We have some job postings that are still open, and we definitely want to fill them,” he added. “We’re just going to keep growing.”
HungerRush’s headquarters is expected to remain in Houston, but Leawood, Kansas, will be added to the company’s list of offices. Other locations include: India, Austin, New York and Ann Arbor, Michigan.
As organizational changes lie ahead for the company, Desai said, the Menufy team is ready to dive in while still focusing on its business and customers — old and new.
“We’re really excited about the acquisition,” Desai said. “I think it’s going to be great for our employees; I think it’s going to be great for our customers; and I think it’s going to be great for Kansas City.”
This story is possible thanks to support from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, a private, nonpartisan foundation that works together with communities in education and entrepreneurship to create uncommon solutions and empower people to shape their futures and be successful.
For more information, visit www.kauffman.org and connect at www.twitter.com/kauffmanfdn and www.facebook.com/kauffmanfdn

2021 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Beyond Collisions: KCSourceLink duo craft book to build entrepreneurial ecosystems
When you’ve worked more than 15 years cultivating an entrepreneurial community, you’re bound to pick up a wealth of tools and insight. And in the case of Maria Meyers and Kate Hodel, the duo’s experience and knowledge have coalesced into a book that aims to provide cities a guide for how to broadly support entrepreneurs.…
KCultivator Q&A: Pedro Zamora percolates on chupacabra, HEDC, Mom’s slow-drip Folgers coffee
Editor’s note: KCultivators is a lighthearted profile series to highlight people who are meaningfully enriching Kansas City’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Check out our features on ‘fashionpreneur’ Jordan Williams, Plexpod founder Gerald Smith, innovation coach Diana Kander, Victor & Penny’s Erin McGrane, SEED Law’s Adrienne Haynes, Code Koalas’ Robert Manigold, Prep-KC CEO Susan Wally and community builder Donald Carter.…
Contract Canvass develops tool for future dominated by freelancers
Chris Brown is working to put his law firm out of business. The Kansas City attorney — who for years has served creative professionals across the metro — recently created a contract automation tool for freelancers, eliminating a part of his business at Venture Legal. But while Contract Canvas might disrupt a facet of his…
Five inspiration points in Westport’s new Freedom design showroom (Photos)
Carol Espinosa bears a striking grin as she bounds up the steps to the rejuvenation area at Freedom Interiors. Palpable excitement beams through her voice. “This is possibly my favorite part of the showroom,” she says, pointing out the lush green carpeting, comfy seating and 360-degree view of the renovated space at 4000 Washington St.…


