It all started with a craving - Rory White’s 7Krave rooted in faith, innovation

A craving from his wife would become the catalyst for what is now 7Krave.

Rory White, chief executive officer of the food delivery service, grocery and marketplace platform, said the idea came from a simple inconvenience after he and his wife moved to Kingston.

“I thought about the fact that I would have to stop working to go and pick up some food. Why wasn’t there a way to order what we wanted?” White told Sunday Lifestyle, adding, “That’s why the app is called 7Krave, for my wife’s craving and the number seven is biblical in the sense that it symbolises completion.”

From there, the business model took form as a directory of sorts, geared towards providing a catalogue of restaurants for customers seeking a variety of options.

“We were going to solve this food problem, especially because at the time, we had just moved to Kingston. We didn’t know where to go. That’s why the company is called Innovative Menu Solutions. It was supposed to be a menu of solutions,” he shared. However, that was only the beginning.

Having the restaurants all in one place was a step forward, but White needed a way to make the service accessible to customers. He turned to coding, teaching himself app development.

LEARNING TO CODE

“The best way to solve this issue is to build the app ourselves... I even learned coding in order to build this app.”

Then there was the matter of delivery. The entrepreneur began outsourcing bearer services to make this dream a reality. However, that proved to be unreliable, and he took matters into his own hands, enlisting delivery personnel using bikes or cars. The business started with one rider in 2015. By 2020, that number had grown to double digits.

“We had about 30,000 customers, and 20-something delivery agents right up to COVID-19,” he said, adding that it was important to have a good relationship with the restaurants on the app.

As time went on and the concept steadily gained traction, White found himself in a similar dilemma. He needed water for his children and was once again faced with the process of leaving home to purchase that necessity. How could that problem be solved? That’s where 7Krave Mart was born.

The grocery arm of the business seeks to allow customers to order pantry staples and other provisions without interrupting busy schedules, while bridging the gap between supply and demand. That same approach was applied to the marketplace, which was launched last November.

EXPANSION

Building on 7Krave and 7Krave Mart, White launched the 7Krave Marketplace, a product platform designed for the promotion and support of local businesses.

“The whole idea of the marketplace was to create something in Jamaica for Jamaicans so that they can keep the money here on the island and support local entrepreneurs,” he said.

Similar to e-commerce giants like Amazon, the concept seemed far-fetched to others at first. But when people asked him why, the response of this entrepreneur was always: why not?

For White, solving problems has always been the driving force behind his entrepreneurial journey.

“I’ve always had a vision to solve other people’s problems. But there have been visions along the way that have aligned with the goals. In 2019, my mother called me one day and asked me what an empire was. When I told her, she told me that the vision came directly in her spirit that my brother and I are going to build an empire,” he said.

Growing up, White attended Cornwall College and he learnt quickly that he was a man of logic. Versed in mathematics, he went on to achieve a bachelor’s degree in actuarial science. He remains in the field as a lecturer at the University of Technology (UTech).

The decision to pursue his business full-time didn’t come without its fair share of sacrifices. When Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) joined the platform, the app was unable to manage the traffic and crashed for three consecutive days, forcing him to not only close the app to try to work out the kinks but to make the toughest decision of his life: walk away from his nine-to-five.

“That weekend was very burdensome. My office job needed my attention, but so did the app. It took me back to a dream I had when I was 17. God told me I had to make a sacrifice. I was told to go and submerge in the middle of the ocean,” White recalled. Questioning the instruction, White said he drowned in the dream. “After that, while still in the dream, I opened my eyes in the middle of the ocean, looked to the top and saw sun rays. Before I knew it, I was on the field of The University of the West Indies, Mona campus. I walked across campus and saw a lot of people waving at me, six or seven riders, other people, all branded similarly.”

He questioned whether they reported to him at that moment. But he woke up soon after, trying to interpret the dream. Years later, while stuck between a rock and a hard place, this man of God finally understood the dream and knew it was time to take that chance and walk in faith. He hasn’t looked back since.

Reflecting on his journey, White remains humbled by and grateful for the support of his wife and family. He hopes to continue building the very empire his mother envisioned, and with God as his guide and shield, solve life’s problems one innovative solution at a time.

krysta.anderson@gleanerjm.com