5 Minutes With… Dannielle and Tom of FoodFitz

After leaving the Australian Defence Force early in 2023, self-proclaimed foodies Dannielle Fitzgerald and Tom Flemming saw a gap in the healthy school lunch market, leading to the launch of their new delivery service FoodFitz.

Tell us about yourselves and FoodFitz.

We are Dannielle and Tom and we are the owners of FoodFitz, a healthy lunches delivery service around Townsville and are currently in our fourth month of business. Dannielle grew up on a farm on the Atherton Tablelands and Tom comes from Melbourne.  We met when we were posted to the same unit in 3^rd Brigade (Australian Defence Force – Army), but left at the start of 2023 to start our new adventure, FoodFitz.   

We are both foodies and would make our lunches everyday but found that when we were time poor it often meant packing unhealthy fast food for lunch.  We found that there was a hole in the pre-packaged food market where consumers were unable to purchase a fresh and healthy lunch that included fresh fruit and vegies; and so our business venture began. 

What has been the most challenging aspect of starting/owning FoodFitz?

Since we are brand new and small business owners, we have to be the jack of all trades.  We are the admin, logistics, chefs, packers, deliverers, and most of all trying our best to leave a footprint on Townsville’s heart.   

We are starting to understand what customers are wanting in their lunches and our menu, so we are progressively developing and updating our menu to suit more people.  

What is a fun fact about yourselves?

Dannielle – I love fishing and camping  

Tom – I’m very much a chameleon in every situation. On that note, I love a chat – so if I’m talking too much when on deliveries, please feel free to remind me I probably have other deliveries to make! 

What is the best piece of career or business advice you have ever received?

Live and learn – this has been something we have lived by.

Slowly we are figuring out what works and what doesn’t work. We’ve made mistakes along the way (and will probably continue to!) but we’re learning from each mistake and adapting to make things work seamlessly. 

Going forward, what is next on the cards for FoodFitz?

Moving forward we would love to grow our little business around Townsville. 

We have recently started delivering to three local schools that don’t have their own tuckshops, or are limited in their tuckshop options, and would love to grow this service so that all schools have access to healthy, fresh lunches daily.  As mentioned earlier, we are foodies and we are passionate about teaching kids (and adults) that healthy food can be just as delicious as foods that aren’t as healthy. 

We have also found that parents and adults are loving our lunches just as much as kids (and ordering for themselves) so we are also considering designing a menu that is more suited to adults.

For more information, follow FoodFitz via Facebook or Instagram.

Main image – Tom Flemming & Dannielle Fitzgerald, Owners & Founders of FoodFitz.

Images Credits – All images supplied.

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