Picture this: It’s Friday night. You’re tired. The kids are cranky. Your spouse is still at work. The last thing you want to do is cook. Oh and this is 10 years ago — there is no Door Dash and no Uber Eats. What do you do? You find a wine that pairs with pb&j and wait for the nightmare to end. But if you were Sarah and Joel Petty, you would have started your own delivery service.
“We came up with idea before there was ever any national companies with the concept,” Sarah said. “I was pregnant at the time, we were working full time, and felt like we never got to see each other. When son was born, we wanted to be at home when we were home, and focus on our time together.”
The couple convinced 7 restaurants to believe in their dream, and Hub City Delivery was born in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Over the last decade, Hub City has grown to serve 90 restaurants with 75 drivers (who work as independent contractors) and 5 full-time employees.
Now, as they look to relocate to Pinehurst to accommodate the budding golf career of their 8-year-old son Davis (he recently placed fourth in the U.S. Kids Golf World Championship at MidPines) they want to expand the model to Moore County. Here, they’re calling themselves The Food Caddies.
“When we came to the area, we loved the local community feel — and saw the need because we wanted to order food. We know the national competition is seeping in here, but that doesn’t scare me at all because we always want to support local businesses and hope they want to do the same.”
Like chain delivery services, The Food Caddies will have an app, and you’ll also be able to order via their website. All of their drivers will be required to undergo background checks.
“Customer service is always key and has always been No.1 thing we’ve focused on. Relationships with restaurant managers and employees are very important. If they need to reach us, they’re not going to go through a call center or have to send an email — ‘It’s like hey, let’s call Sarah and Joel and get it taken care of.'”
The couple hopes to relocate to the area in the next 6-10 months, and open The Food Caddies for business in the first of December.
Watch their website for updates — and read a Q&A on the couple’s business here.
