Smart Foodservice

What Smart Foodservice does

Smart Foodservice, now operating exclusively under the CHEF'STORE® brand, is a cash-and-carry wholesale foodservice retail chain serving restaurants, caterers, hotels, culinary professionals, and other foodservice operators across 14 US states (Arizona, California, Georgia, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Washington). The company sells bulk food and kitchen supplies, including private-label exclusive brands Harvest Value (pantry staples, oils, canned and dry goods), Harvest Edge (flour and baking), and Monarch (condiments and packaged goods), alongside the Cool and Carry® food safety program and the CHEF'STORE® Customer Card loyalty/personalized-pricing program. Distribution combines 14 physical warehouse-retail locations with a multi-channel digital layer: the company's own CLICK&CARRY curbside pickup flow plus third-party delivery integrations with Instacart, DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub.

Originally founded in 1956, the business was acquired by US Foods (NYSE: USFD) in 2020 and rebranded from Smart Foodservice to CHEF'STORE. The corporate parent is Delaware-domiciled US Foods, Inc.; operations are headquartered in Redding, California. The offering model is unique within US Foods' portfolio in that it bypasses the traditional DSD broadline distributor relationship, instead allowing professional buyers to walk in (or order online) and self-fulfill at wholesale cash-and-carry prices with no membership fee requirement.

Following acquisition, US Foods disclosed that the cash-and-carry format underperformed on projected synergies and could not be sold to a third party, with management publicly characterizing the asset as not a strategic fit. The current operating model retains the 14-store footprint, exclusive-brand portfolio, loyalty card, food-safety program, and multi-channel digital stack, but the subsidiary's strategic posture is best characterized as in evaluation/exit by the parent rather than in active expansion. Revenue is not separately disclosed by US Foods, and named-customer or anchor-account evidence is not present in the public record, indicating a long-tail SMB customer base.

Name

Smart Foodservice

Legal name

US Foods, Inc.

Website

https://smartfoodservice.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Smart Foodservice operates the CHEF'STORE® cash-and-carry wholesale foodservice chain, running 14 stores across 14 US states that sell bulk food and kitchen supplies to restaurants, caterers, hotels, and culinary professionals under US Foods ownership.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wholesale Foodservice Distribution

NAICS

Other Specialty Food Retailers (44529), Meat and Meat Product Merchant Wholesalers (42447)

SIC

Retail-Food Stores (5400), Miscellaneous Food Preparations & Kindred Products (2090)

akta.pro primary industry

Foodservice Cash-and-Carry (Restaurants/Caterers) (CRAHACAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Restaurant & Foodservice Supply Cash-and-Carry (Chef Stores) (CRAHAMAD), Food Preparation Equipment & Smallwares Wholesale (AFAIALAK), Foodservice Packaging & Takeout Containers Wholesale (AFAIALAE)

Keywords

• Wholesale foodservice distribution
• Cash-and-carry grocery
• Restaurant supply stores
• Commercial kitchen supplies
• Bulk food wholesale

Headquarters

HQ city

Redding

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Smart Foodservice (operating as CHEF'STORE®) is a cash-and-carry wholesale foodservice retailer that sells bulk food, beverages, and commercial kitchen supplies directly to restaurants, caterers, hotels, and other foodservice operators from physical warehouse-style stores. The company offers exclusive US Foods private-label brands (Harvest Value, Harvest Edge, Monarch) and multiple shopping modalities including in-store shopping, CLICK&CARRY curbside pickup, and third-party delivery.

Product overview

Chef'Store is US Foods' cash-and-carry wholesale foodservice retail brand, operating physical warehouse stores across multiple U.S. states where professional foodservice operators purchase bulk food and kitchen supplies without a membership fee. The company offers multiple shopping channels including in-store shopping, CLICK&CARRY Pick Up, and third-party delivery integrations (Instacart, DoorDash, Uber Eats, Grubhub). The product portfolio centers on the Chef'Store retail format complemented by the Harvest Value private label brand, the CHEF'STORE Customer Card loyalty program, and the Cool and Carry food safety program.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Harvest Value: Exclusive brand product line including pantry staples, oils, canned goods, and dry goods.
• Harvest Edge
• Monarch
• Cool and Carry®

Products and services

• CHEF'STORE (formerly Smart Foodservice) A cash-and-carry wholesale foodservice retail format offering bulk food, beverages, and kitchen supplies to professional foodservice operators (restaurants, caterers, hotels, chefs) from physical warehouse stores with no membership fee required.
• Exclusive US Foods Brands (Harvest Value, Harvest Edge, Monarch) Private-label product line sold at CHEF'STORE locations, including pantry staples, oils, canned goods, dry goods, flour, baking products, condiments, and packaged goods exclusive to the US Foods/CHEF'STORE channel.
• CHEF'STORE Customer Card Customer account and loyalty program enabling business customers to access personalized pricing, promotions, temporary price reductions, and exclusive specials.
• CLICK&CARRY Pick Up Online ordering service allowing customers to place orders online and collect them via curbside pickup at their selected CHEF'STORE location.
• Cool and Carry® Food Safety Program Food safety program ensuring proper temperature control and handling of perishable items during transport for customers purchasing cold/frozen goods.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Performance Food Group: Performance Food Group is a major US foodservice distributor serving restaurants and institutional buyers. Its broadline distribution overlaps with the same operator customers Chef'Store serves, although it does not operate a comparable cash-and-retail storefront format.
• Sam's Club: Sam's Club is a national warehouse club selling bulk groceries and kitchen supplies with a membership model. It serves a broader consumer base but overlaps with Chef'Store on bulk foodservice purchasing for small operators and value-oriented restaurants.
• Costco Business Center: Costco Business Centers are warehouse-format stores tailored for foodservice and small business buyers, offering bulk grocery and kitchen supplies. While Costco is a much larger club operator, the Business Center format competes for the same bulk-buying restaurant customer.
• Sysco: Sysco is the largest US broadline foodservice distributor and acquired Restaurant Depot in 2024. While primarily a delivery-based distributor, its owned cash-and-carry business places Sysco in direct competition with Chef'Store at both wholesale and retail layers.
• BJ's Wholesale Club: BJ's Wholesale Club operates membership warehouse clubs in the eastern US with bulk grocery and consumable assortments. Its foodservice-adjacent bulk offering competes with Chef'Store in shared Mid-Atlantic and Southeast markets.

Direct peers

• Restaurant Depot: Restaurant Depot is the largest US cash-and-carry foodservice retailer with 200+ warehouse stores serving restaurants, caterers, and foodservice operators. It is the most direct comparable to Chef'Store's cash-and-carry, no-membership, bulk-purchase model.
• Gordon Food Service Store: Gordon Food Service operates a network of cash-and-carry retail stores in addition to its broadline foodservice distribution. Its store format directly mirrors Chef'Store's walk-in wholesale model for restaurants and small operators.

Others

• US Foods: US Foods is Chef'Store's parent company and one of the largest US broadline foodservice distributors. While not a peer in the cash-and-carry sense, US Foods' distribution scale, sourcing leverage, and exclusive brand portfolio directly enable Chef'Store's assortment and pricing.

Regional players

• Central Market (H-E-B): Central Market is H-E-B's upscale specialty grocery banner concentrated in Texas. While not a direct cash-and-carry foodservice retailer, it offers chef-quality specialty foods and bulk ingredients that overlap with Chef'Store's premium offerings in shared Texas markets.

Emerging players

• Webstaurant Store: Webstaurant Store is a leading online restaurant supply retailer selling kitchen equipment, supplies, and bulk foodservice items. It competes for the same operator purchasing occasions through a delivery-only model that complements or substitutes for cash-and-carry trips.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/smrtfoodservice
• Facebookfacebook.com/smartfoodservicecashcarry-1028835470533479
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/smartfoodservice
• Instagraminstagram.com/USFCHEFSTORE
• Pinterestpinterest.com/USFCHEFSTORE

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Smart Foodservice