Building Froodo: My Entrepreneurial Journey to 500 Daily Orders

Embarking on an entrepreneurial journey feels like assembling a parachute mid-fall. Here’s my story from 2018.

In 2018, I co-founded Froodo, a subscription-based healthy snacking business delivering fresh, chilled cut fruit boxes to customers’ doorsteps. It wasn’t just a business — it was a crash course in customer acquisition, growth hacking, hiring, finance, operations, and customer service.

The AHA Moment: Identifying the Problem

The idea came from a personal pain point.

Late afternoons at the office meant hunger. Most days, we reached for unhealthy street food. One day, passing fresh fruit stalls, it hit us: what if someone delivered assorted, chilled fruit directly to the office?

That was the AHA. A clear gap in the market for convenient, healthy snacks — especially for urban professionals.

The Early Days: Building from Scratch

Two days later, we:

Incorporated the company.
Rented a tiny commercial space.
Hired our first team via classified ads — a delivery person and a kitchen assistant.

No roadmap. Just execution.

The First Big Hurdle: Getting Customers

We had the kitchen. We had the staff. What we didn’t have? Customers.

We built a nice website, created subscription packages, and launched an Instagram. Nothing moved.

So we tried something scrappy: we joined Facebook food groups and posed as happy customers. It worked. Five orders on Day 1. The thrill was better than a paycheck.

Growth Hacking and Scaling

From five to 500 daily orders in six months. No ad spend.

Just relentless iteration, community hacks, and product-market fit.

Customer Empathy and Feedback

We handled every query ourselves.

That direct feedback loop shaped our offering. It also taught me something foundational — customer empathy is a superpower.

Keeping the Team Lean and Efficient

We hired smart and lean.

We provided accommodation for staff, so they lived where they worked. This eliminated commuting, allowed 24/7 shifts, and kept operating costs low.

Go-To-Market Strategy

With no marketing budget:

We collaborated with local wellness influencers.
Created valuable health content on social.
Distributed free trial boxes at health fairs.
Focused on word-of-mouth and community hacks.

Results and Impact

Within one year: 500 daily orders.

Driven by:

A real customer need.
Fast, scrappy execution.
Customer-first feedback loops.
Data-driven iteration.

Conclusion

Building Froodo wasn’t just a startup story. It was my bootcamp in product-market fit, zero-budget marketing, and team-driven scale.

The lessons? Still relevant:

Start from pain.
Ship fast.
Talk to your customers.
Stay lean. Iterate. Scale.