81. How Gousto is taking on the ultra-processed food industry | Timo Boldt

60% of the UK diet is ultra-processed. And the food industry is manufacturing your addiction. So why is this public health crisis continuing in plain sight, and what it would actually take to change it?

Two things are clear. Britain's food system is more broken than most people realise. And Gousto is far more interesting a business than its recipe boxes suggest.

In today’s episode, James speaks with Timo Boldt, founder and CEO of Gousto, about building one of the UK's most ambitious food businesses from scratch and why, 14 years and 80 million meals later, he's only just getting started.

Timo shares how he left a career in investment banking to start again. With no money, no network, no customers, he shares what that journey has taught him about fundraising without connections, growing with your customers and building a business around a problem genuinely worth solving.

They also discuss how Gousto has used AI intelligently from the beginning, not as a replacement for people, but as a tool that makes the whole operation sharper; from cutting food waste and optimising factory logistics to building fully personalised menus that 80% of customers now rely on.

Timestamps:

01:37 What Gousto Does

06:23 From Banking to Entrepreneurship

13:24 Scrappy Startup and First Orders

25:35 Affordability Taxes and Transparency

31:16 Healthy Without Preaching

34:33 Factories And Delivery Network

42:12 China Trip AI And Robotics

Links

Follow James Reed on LinkedIn

Follow Timo Boldt on LinkedIn

Find out more about Gousto and their products

Submit your application to Reed’s Entrepreneurs Fund for a chance to a £20,000 grant HERE

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This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast to elevate your brand, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk