The Dinner Ladies
The Dinner Ladies is an Australian direct-to-consumer prepared meal delivery service founded in 2007, offering 85+ snap-frozen, ready-to-heat homestyle meals delivered across five Australian states to households, with a focus on busy families and NDIS/Home Care Package customers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2007
- HeadquartersMatraville, Australia
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What The Dinner Ladies does
The Dinner Ladies is an Australian direct-to-consumer prepared meal company founded in 2007 in Sydney's eastern suburbs by co-founders Sophie Gilliatt and Katherine Westwood. The company produces and home-delivers snap-frozen, ready-to-heat homestyle meals made from real ingredients without artificial preservatives. Its catalogue spans 85+ SKUs organized into mains (lasagnes, curries, pies, pastas, international dishes), sides, desserts, small bites, kids meals, and a dedicated vegetarian collection, with curated Dinner Boxes for 2 ($171.50) or 4 ($294.00) and digital gift cards ($50-$500). Meals are cooked, snap-frozen immediately to extend shelf life to 3-6 months, and dispatched via a proprietary refrigerated van fleet delivering to NSW, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, ACT, and Western Australia.
The business operates on a pay-as-you-go e-commerce model with no subscription lock-in. Pricing is unit-based at roughly $8 to $65 per meal depending on serving size, with delivery fees of $15 standard, $10 for orders up to $150, and free over $150, and a $75 minimum food order. Distribution is direct via the company's own Shopify storefront (dinnerladies.com.au), with acquisition supported by content marketing, email, organic social on Facebook and Instagram, SEO, and a $20/$20 referral program. The company also serves NDIS participants and Home Care Package holders through a pay-upfront-with-split-invoice model for government reimbursement.
Operations are anchored by a long-term core supplier relationship with Select Fresh Providores, through which more than 198,000kg of fresh sustainable produce is sourced annually, alongside minor supplier partnerships with Vannella Cheese and Tathra Place. The company employs 101-250 staff, has accumulated 40,420+ customer reviews averaging 4.69 stars, and has earned third-party recognition including 2025 Australian Financial Review Business Growth, 2024 Broadsheet Best Meal Delivery, and a 2024 BEST Awards Gold for website design. There is no disclosed external funding; The Dinner Ladies Pty. Ltd. remains privately held by the co-founders.
The Dinner Ladies firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Dinner Ladies
- Legal name
- The Dinner Ladies Pty. Ltd.
- Website
- https://dinnerladies.com.au
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2007
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- The Dinner Ladies is an Australian direct-to-consumer prepared meal delivery service founded in 2007, offering 85+ snap-frozen, ready-to-heat homestyle meals delivered across five Australian states to households, with a focus on busy families and NDIS/Home Care Package customers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Dinner Ladies industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Frozen Meal Delivery
- NAICS
- Frozen Specialty Food Manufacturing (311412)
- SIC
- Canned, Frozen & Preservd Fruit, Veg & Food Specialties (2030)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Shelf-Stable Prepared Meals & Heat-and-Eat Retail (CRAHAJAF)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Refrigerated Prepared Meals (Chilled Ready Meals) (CRADADAM), Family-Style & Group Meal Bundles (Multi-Serve Prepared) (CRAHAJAH), Chilled/ready-to-heat prepared meals manufacturing (AFAKAHAB)
Keywords
Where The Dinner Ladies is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Matraville
- HQ country
- Australia
- HQ region
- Oceania
Offices1 record
Markets served
The Dinner Ladies business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Direct Meal Sales: One-time purchases of individual meals and bundle boxes sold through the e-commerce website. Customers can order weekly or as needed with no subscription lock-in. Revenue comes from food sales plus delivery fees.
- Gift Cards: Digital gift cards sold in denominations from $50 to $500. Recipients can use them to purchase meals on the website.
- Bundle Boxes: Pre-curated dinner boxes such as 'Favourites Box for 2' ($171.50) and 'Favourites Box for 4' ($294.00) offering bundled meals at a slight discount.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Individual meal pricing |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Delivery fees |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Gift cards |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Bundle boxes |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels6 records
The Dinner Ladies product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Dinner Ladies cooks home-style meals in commercial kitchens, snap-freezes them at peak freshness without preservatives, and delivers the ready-to-heat meals directly to Australian households via a refrigerated-van network. Its product range spans mains, sides, desserts, small bites, kids meals, gift cards, and multi-meal bundle boxes, with supporting purchase pathways for NDIS participants and Home Care Package recipients.
Product overview
The Dinner Ladies is a prepared meal delivery service offering a portfolio of snap-frozen, ready-to-heat homestyle meals. The core offering consists of Mains (lasagnes, curries, pies, pastas, and international dishes), complemented by Sides (mashed potato, rice, gratins), Desserts (sticky date pudding, crumbles), Small Bites (snacks, canapés), and Kids Meals. Products are available individually or as bundled Dinner Boxes for 2 or 4 people. The company also offers Gift Cards. All meals are cooked with real ingredients, snap-frozen without artificial preservatives, and delivered directly to customers' doors via refrigerated vans throughout Australia.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Mains (Prepared Main Meals) The Dinner Ladies' hero category: home-cooked, snap-frozen, ready-to-heat dinner mains delivered via refrigerated vans to Australian households and to NDIS and Home Care Package recipients.
- Sides Vegetable, salad, starch, and accompaniment side dishes prepared and snap-frozen for ready-to-heat serving with mains.
- Desserts Prepared sweet desserts, snap-frozen and delivered ready to heat or serve as a complement to main meals.
- Small Bites Smaller-portion appetizer-style items within the prepared meal range, snap-frozen and delivered via the refrigerated-van network.
- Kids Meals Smaller-portioned, home-cooked meals designed for children, snap-frozen and ready to heat, delivered to households across Australia.
- Bundle Box (Multi-Meal Packages) Curated multi-meal bundle boxes combining a selection of mains, sides, and other items at bundled pricing for household customers.
- Gift Cards Gift cards redeemable on The Dinner Ladies website toward meal and bundle purchases, available in multiple denominations.
- NDIS Participant Meal Support Funded provision of snap-frozen, ready-to-heat The Dinner Ladies meals to National Disability Insurance Scheme participants, ordered through NDIS plans.
- Home Care Package Meals Funded provision of The Dinner Ladies snap-frozen, ready-to-heat meals to Australian aged-care Home Care Package recipients through their Home Care Package budget.
Quantifiable outcome
- 4.69 out of 5 star rating based on 40,420+ reviews
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use The Dinner Ladies
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
The Dinner Ladies technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
The Dinner Ladies partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Select Fresh ProvidorescoreLong-term supplier partnership for fresh, sustainable produce. Helps bring over 198,000kg of fresh produce annually. Family-owned team that has been a reliable sourcing partner for The Dinner Ladies.
- Vannella CheeseminorArtisan cheese maker supplying quality cheese products. Story began in Puglia, Italy with Vito Minoia who began learning cheesemaking at sixteen. Now supplies cheese for use in Dinner Ladies recipes.
- Tathra PlaceminorSupplier of free-range duck marylands used in the Roast Duck Marylands with Cherry Plum Sauce dish.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
The Dinner Ladies competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
The Dinner Ladies social profiles
Digital presenceThe Dinner Ladies financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Dinner Ladies leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
The Dinner Ladies funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Dinner Ladies M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Dinner Ladies
What does The Dinner Ladies do?
The Dinner Ladies cooks home-style meals in commercial kitchens, snap-freezes them at peak freshness without preservatives, and delivers the ready-to-heat meals directly to Australian households via a refrigerated-van network. Its product range spans mains, sides, desserts, small bites, kids meals, gift cards, and multi-meal bundle boxes, with supporting purchase pathways for NDIS participants and Home Care Package recipients.
Is The Dinner Ladies a public or private company?
The Dinner Ladies is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was The Dinner Ladies founded?
The Dinner Ladies was founded in 2007. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is The Dinner Ladies based?
The Dinner Ladies is headquartered in Matraville, Australia, in the Oceania region.
How does The Dinner Ladies make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Direct Meal Sales are the primary driver. The others are gift Cards and bundle Boxes.
Does The Dinner Ladies have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Dinner Ladies.
What industry is The Dinner Ladies in?
The Dinner Ladies's product category is Frozen Meal Delivery. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRAHAJAF, Shelf-Stable Prepared Meals & Heat-and-Eat Retail, with a secondary code of CRADADAM, Refrigerated Prepared Meals (Chilled Ready Meals). Its NAICS code is 311412 and its SIC code is 2030.