Putting food first and preparing for growth: why Nourish Contract Catering chose IndiCater
Why Nourish Contract Catering chose to partner with IndiCater Catering Management Platform
Nourish Contract Catering was built on the idea that children deserve better food.
Founded in 2003 by Annette Ryan Murphy, the business began as a response to the lack of quality in school meals – something she saw firsthand as a parent. More than 20 years later, that same philosophy still underpins everything the business does.
Today, Nourish has grown into a specialist education catering provider serving around 320 schools, spanning primary, secondary and specialist settings. The business has also recently expanded into Ireland, where growth has already exceeded expectations.
But with that growth comes complexity: different service models, new markets and ambitious plans for further expansion and potential acquisitions.
For Managing Director Mark Hammond, it became clear that the next stage of growth required a different kind of technology partner.
"Picking someone to work with that’s able to help us with those different models is very, very important from an IT perspective and how we’re going to manage the business. Although we operate in education only, there is quite a lot of diversity in what we need to achieve with different clients and different setups. Having a technology provider that understood that quite early on and could say, ‘Don’t worry about that, we can handle it’ was really, really key.”
The challenge: a platform that wasn’t growing with the business
In many ways and for many years, Nourish’s previous catering management platform still functioned as a key business tool, but it wasn’t evolving. For a growing business like Nourish Contract Catering, that was becoming a limitation on their moving operations and the scale at which they were growing.
Mark explained the real challenges: “Every time we needed something from our previous provider, there was a delay. It wasn’t because the people we were speaking to didn’t want to help – they just had no time, no development support. We weren’t going to get the specific development we needed, we weren’t going to get any integrations and renewing was only going to give us more of exactly what we already had.”
At the same time, expectations across the sector are shifting. Parents want more visibility and flexibility. Schools want better reporting. Teams need systems that are intuitive and connected. And the pace of technological change – particularly around AI and integrations – is only accelerating.
“It doesn’t take a genius to see that AI is just going to keep going and keep driving forward. The growth in these sorts of things is only going one way, so you need to work with a partner that is on the front foot, that understands that, can see it coming and is already starting to use some of that in what they’re doing. We needed to know we were working with somebody whose product was moving with the world, not standing still.”
Finding a partner that truly aligned
The appeal for Mark and Nourish was about finding a partner and a team that understood the realities of the business and the challenges across the industry.
“What appealed to me was that the IndiCater team clearly had relationships with multiple partners and were already working on integrations with different systems and providers. That’s really important, because you don’t always have the luxury of choosing who we’re using. We need to work with someone that can integrate with multiple other partners. From a strategic level, I kind of thought straight away: yes, this all really aligns.”
But alignment wasn’t just about integrations and technology, it needed to be culturally connected too. Nourish has worked hard to build a collaborative, people-first culture internally. Titles don’t matter. Teams work together. Successes and challenges are shared. And they were looking for that same mindset in a partner.
“We don’t want corporate partners. We don’t want a scheduled meeting every second Thursday to discuss KPIs. The way you get true innovation and true change is that some of these things just morph and happen as you go along. If you’re a positive business and you’re working with positive people, you want a partner that comes to you and says: ‘We’ve been thinking about this. What do you think?’ That’s far more valuable to us.”
True partnership from early conversations
One of the biggest differences for Nourish has been how the relationship feels. From early conversations with the team, through to day-to-day interactions, there’s been a sense of ease and familiarity that’s much more in line with the Nourish team culture and that goes beyond a typical supplier relationship.
“Talking to the IndiCater team is second nature. I can see some of the conversations going on between our team and theirs and it’s a bit like they’re sat next to each other in an office. That is important because we’re in business together. We are in a business partnership together. We hate the phrase ‘service provider’, we’d rather just be a partner.”
That trust was reinforced during the commercial process too.
“What I really liked about the whole process was that there’s always the business side, there’s always the contractual side and there’s always negotiation that you have to do. Together we got that done sensibly and really quickly. We could probably talk for two hours, but we could also get done what we needed to in about a matter of minutes.”
A confident start to mobilisation
In the past, Nourish Contract Catering has experienced a challenging time onboarding with new technology and system changes in general. Getting mobilisation right was critical. So far, the experience with IndiCater has been a positive one.
Mark explains that honesty and clarity has been particularly welcomed: “I feel completely confident that this will go well. What I like was that when I asked some very straight questions, I got a straight and honest answer back. That gives me real confidence in the process. That’s what I want from a partner. Not somebody who just tells me what I want to hear, but somebody who’s got the experience to say, ‘No, this is the better way to do it.”
Internally, the move to IndiCater has also been well received. While there is always apprehension with change and new ways of working, that quickly shifted in the early stages of mobilisation. It didn’t take long for both teams to come together and really understand the benefits.
Mark shares his thoughts on how the Nourish team felt about the change in having new catering management software: “Initially, like with anything, there was a bit of apprehension. Not because people hated the idea, but because change is change. Once people know a system, it feels safe. But actually, from the finance side and the food development side especially, there’s been a lot of positivity because they understand the limitations of what we had before. Everybody’s on board because they can see it will undoubtedly be a massive improvement, so it’s worth it.”
A clear move towards better control, insight and performance
Looking ahead, Nourish Contact Catering see the IndiCater partnership as a way to fundamentally strengthen how the business operates. The hospitality industry will always be a tough place to operate, with margins getting tighter every year. Cost pressures are consistent and data needs to play a big part in how contract caterers gain better visibility that leads to better efficiency and decision-making.
Mark explains what he’s most looking forward to as the relationship with IndiCater evolves…
"What we are looking forward to most is being able to control our business better, having more data and more accurate data on our business. Off the back of the partnership, the software and getting the training right, I’m going to be able to see an improvement in how we run our business. That will flow into us being more economical with a bid, more efficient with our clients and more aggressive in the market in the right way."
A partnership built for the future
Perhaps the most important factor in Nourish’s decision was the confidence in what comes next. The forward thinking, AI-driven approach to what’s not just happening today, but where the IndiCater platform is going in the future.
“What we’ve bought today is great, but what we want to be rebuying with IndiCater in three or five years’ time is a long-term partnership where the feeling is ‘Why would we go anywhere else?’. Things are changing. Everybody wants information much more quickly and I feel confident that by partnering with IndiCater, they’re always looking ahead. Always looking at the next thing.
I believe that Indicater would come to me and say ‘We’re working on something – what do you think?’. And that’s exciting, because rather than us constantly having to ask for change, it feels like we’re working with a team that wants to evolve the product and involve us in that journey.
We really want to be on the forefront of what Indicater can offer. I’m happy to dedicate time, people and resource to that, because I think that’s where the real value of a partnership comes from – not just buying a product, but helping shape where it can go.”
As Nourish continues to grow across the UK and Ireland, expand its services and explore new opportunities, having the right partner in place will be critical. Not just to support where the business is today, but to help shape where it goes next.
There’s a clear alignment in how both teams think and work, and it’s a partnership the IndiCater team is genuinely excited to be part of.
Unlocking more advantages with IndiCater
If you’d like to dive deeper into this case study or explore how IndiCater can support your catering team, we’d love to hear from you. Get in touch with us below – we’d love to support your team.