What Five Star Breaktime Solutions does

Five Star Breaktime Solutions, operating legally as Five Star Food Service, Inc., is a private on-site food and beverage service provider founded in 1993 and headquartered in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The company designs, installs, and operates breakroom solutions—including self-checkout micro markets, vending machines, office coffee and tea programs, filtered and bottled water services (including Bevi smart dispensers), pantry service, catering, corporate dining, and a company-owned Culinary Center producing fresh food under HACCP/USDA oversight—for employers and institutional customers across the Southeast and Midwest United States.

The company serves 3,500+ micro market locations through a network of 40 local branches, employing between 1,001 and 5,000 people across at least nine states (Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Ohio). Its technology stack centers on the refive Market rewards platform and mobile app (iOS/Android) for loyalty and touchless checkout, Breaktime TV digital in-breakroom signage, remote temperature monitoring with automatic FDA/USDA-driven cooler lock-out, and PCI-certified self-checkout hardware (kiosks, tablets, Pico devices, and the Canteen Connect & Pay app). The Culinary Center in LaFayette, GA operates with same-day shipping to distribution centers and supplies proprietary brands such as Harvest + Main sandwiches and Meals by Five Star programs.

Five Star generates revenue through a mix of subscription/recurring service contracts (micro markets, coffee and tea), transaction-based sales (vending), hardware placements (water dispensers), managed services (corporate dining, serving 2M+ meals annually), and professional services (catering). Pricing is quote-based and customized per client, with free site surveys as the standard sales motion. Distribution is direct via 40 branch-based field service teams, supplemented by an e-commerce storefront (shop.fivestarbreaktime.com) and a channel partnership with Canteen (Compass Group) that provides access to Fortune 500 enterprise procurement channels. The company is independently owned with no disclosed institutional investor, and pursues growth through tuck-in acquisitions (e.g., Cajun Vending of Houma LLC, August 2024) and organic branch expansion.

Name

Five Star Breaktime Solutions

Legal name

Five Star Food Service, Inc.

Website

https://fivestarbreaktime.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Five Star Breaktime Solutions is a private, Chattanooga-based provider of on-site workplace food and beverage services—including micro markets, vending, coffee, water, catering, and corporate dining—serving 3,500+ employer and institutional locations across the Southeast and Midwest through 40 local branches.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Workplace Food and Beverage Services

NAICS

Special Food Services (7223)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)

akta.pro primary industry

All-Day Dining Restaurants (THAFACAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Meal-Prep, Snack Station & Lunch Packing Zones (HSAFACAG)

Keywords

• Workplace food service
• Micro market vending
• Office coffee service
• Corporate dining management
• Breakroom solutions

Headquarters

HQ city

Chattanooga

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices51 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Micro Market Services: Recurring service revenue from custom-built, self-pay micro markets installed in workplace breakrooms. Revenue generated through product sales at self-checkout kiosks plus ongoing service and maintenance fees.
2. Vending Machine Services: Traditional vending services providing snacks, beverages, and fresh food through automated machines. Revenue generated through product sales and equipment service contracts.
3. Coffee & Tea Service: Full-service office coffee and tea programs including equipment provision, product supply, and ongoing restocking. Professional service representatives inventory, deliver, and stock breakrooms with coffee essentials.
4. Water Services: Filtered water units and 5-gallon bottled water delivery services. Includes Bevi smart water dispensers providing still, sparkling, and flavored water on demand.
5. Catering Services: Catering for events ranging from simple box lunches to company picnics and black-tie affairs. 20+ years of catering experience across the Southern United States.
6. Corporate Dining: Onsite dining solutions including employee restaurants, cafeteria management, and full-service menu dine-in cafes. Plans, creates, and serves over two million meals annually in dining facilities.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Five Star Breaktime Solutions designs, installs, and manages on-site breakroom food and beverage programs for workplaces across the Southeast and Midwest United States. Its offerings include custom-built self-pay micro markets, vending machines, office coffee and tea service, filtered and bottled water service, office pantry stocking, catering, onsite corporate dining, and fresh food production from a company-owned Culinary Center. Service is delivered through 40 local branches and supported by a breakroom technology ecosystem including a rewards mobile app, self-checkout kiosks, digital signage, and remote temperature monitoring.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Breakroom Micro Markets

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 2 million meals served annually in dining facilities
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Canteen (Compass Group)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFive Star Breaktime Solutions is a proud partner of Canteen, which is part of Compass Group. This partnership enables Five Star to deliver reliable service backed by industry-leading scale, innovation, and operational expertise. Through this channel partnership, Five Star serves Fortune 500 companies and other enterprise clients with consistent breakroom solutions across multiple locations.
• BevicoreTechnology or IntegrationFive Star partners with Bevi to offer smart water dispensers including the Standup 2.0 and Countertop models. Bevi provides customizable still, sparkling, and flavored water on demand with flavor options and enhancements. The partnership allows Five Star to offer workplace wellness solutions including touchless filtered water coolers that support corporate sustainability goals.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Avanti Markets: Operator of workplace micro markets and self-checkout kiosks with a national operator network. Closely mirrors Five Star's micro market and vending service model for employers.
• 365 Retail Markets: Provider of self-checkout kiosks, micro market technology, and unattended retail platforms. Directly comparable to Five Star's micro market and self-checkout stack and competes for the same enterprise breakroom budgets.
• Canteen (Compass Group): Compass Group's vending, micro market, and workplace foodservice brand and Five Star's most strategic partner. Operates nationally with overlapping micro market, vending, coffee, and corporate dining offerings, making it both collaborator and direct competitor for enterprise accounts.
• Guckenheimer: Corporate dining and workplace hospitality provider offering employee restaurants, catering, and managed food services. Comparable to Five Star's corporate dining and catering revenue streams for mid-market and enterprise clients.
• USConnect: Network of regional vending, micro market, and office coffee service operators across the U.S. Operates a similar multi-service breakroom model as Five Star with comparable customers and offerings.
• Eurest (Compass Group): Compass Group's workplace dining and corporate cafeteria brand, providing full-service employee restaurants and managed dining programs — directly comparable to Five Star's corporate dining and catering services.

Emerging players

• Driftaway Coffee: Subscription-based specialty coffee roaster expanding into office coffee services. An emerging alternative for office coffee programs, competing for the same workplace beverage budget that Five Star's coffee & tea service addresses.

Regional players

• Corporate Essentials: Regional office coffee, water, and pantry service provider concentrated in the Northeast U.S. Comparable to Five Star's coffee/water/pantry subscription streams but operating in a different geography with overlapping service model.

Broad incumbents

• Aramark: Global food services and facilities management incumbent offering workplace dining, vending, and micro market solutions to enterprises. Comparable to Five Star on corporate dining and managed food services, with broader scale across sports, education, and corrections.
• Sodexo: Large multinational foodservice and facilities management company with significant workplace dining and on-site food service operations. Competes with Five Star for enterprise and Fortune 500 on-site food contracts at national scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/about

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Five Star Breaktime Solutions