THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Home chefs who work from the comfort of the kitchens in thir own home have become popular among food-lovers. Though the demand for homely food has increased, especially among working professionals, home chefs do not always get the best platforms to share their recipes or experiments with others. This is where capital city-based Butomy, probably a one-of-its-kind social media platform and mobile application, comes in.
The platform is the brainchild of IT professionals Binju James, Tojo Thomas and Mammutty P S. “The idea was originally mooted in 2019 by Binju and Tojo who were working in Dubai. Mammutty was working in Thiruvananthapuram then. The online platform started full-fledged operations in the city from last year. Binju and Tojo resigned from their jobs and came to Kerala to start the venture with their friend,” shares Saju K Satya, marketing head of Butomy.
The founders did detailed research on the food business industry in Kerala and held several discussions with its stakeholders before developing the online food platform.
“Butomy aims to connect food lovers with various home chefs in the city and works towards woman empowerment. Currently, more than 30 employees work for the platform. We aim to help women and transgender entrepreneurs and are planning to give employment to more people in the coming days,” said Saju.
The founders said the online platform aims to make quality food accessible to food lovers. “Compared to other big-scale online food delivery aggregators, we charge just 15 per cent service charge. A food safety licence is provided to the home chefs along with training on basic food hygiene standards. The platform also provides a personalised space for food lovers to post about their favourite dishes,” said Binju. More than 140 home chefs and 120 restaurants from the capital city are already part of the platform. The onboarding is in progress in Kochi.
Butomy has a food bank where anybody can donate provisions to orphanages, shelter homes, or victims of natural disasters anywhere in the world. It is currently active in Thiruvananthapuram only. “With the help of the application, people will be able to connect to the supermarkets in that particular district and help the needy. The food will be delivered to the people who need it with the help of Qwqer, a Mumbai-based food delivery platform, which is our partner,” Tojo said.
“Soon, we will launch Butomy in the US. In two years, we plan to expand to all 14 districts in the state. Launching the platform in other cities such as Bengaluru is also in the pipeline,” said Mammutty.
Food Bank
The application Butomy also has an option of food bank, where users can donate provisions to orphanages, shelter homes and victims of natural disasters. The option is currently active in Thiruvananthapuram.