Fabulous Catering

Owner: Adam Pope

Location: Victoria

Industry: Hospitality and tourism

Founded: 2006

Employees: 14

Website: fabulouscatering.com.au

For Fabulous Catering owner Adam Pope, the biggest lesson of this year is the importance of having diversity in a product range.

The Melbourne-based catering company transformed its offering as COVID-19 restrictions evolved, and its most successful promotion was a high tea experience in a box.

The high tea box was such a hit that Fabulous Catering blasted its previous record of 100 orders in a day by completing 2,000 orders. Pope even hired three additional front-of-house staff to manage phone calls for several weeks leading up to Mother’s Day.  

Pope says it paid off to think about how government health restrictions would influence the market and how he could respond with his products.

“A challenge that had to be overcome was the constant creativity to be able to be first to market and have a unique point of difference,” he said.

On top of high tea in a box, Fabulous Catering created ‘stay at home’ fine dining packages, Father’s Day packages, and virtual conference packages including canapes and mini champagne bottles.  

Customers could buy these products via Fabulous Catering’s online shop, which the team set up at the start of the pandemic within two days, to allow orders to be made, paid for and delivered in a contactless manner.

Next year, Pope aims to grow the business by maintaining hospital contracts, through wedding and events catering, growing the ready-made meals brand, and expanding delivery interstate.

“We will look to partner with a transport company and expand the delivery service interstate, such as to NSW and Qld,” he says.