Sabato
New Zealand specialty food retailer and e-commerce business, founded in 1993, curating artisan Italian, Spanish, and French gourmet ingredients alongside an in-house prepared-foods line. It serves food enthusiasts and hospitality professionals via a flagship Auckland store, nationwide online delivery, and trade accounts.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1993
- HeadquartersAuckland, New Zealand
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
Sabato firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Sabato
- Legal name
- Sabato
- Website
- https://sabato.co.nz
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1993
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- New Zealand specialty food retailer and e-commerce business, founded in 1993, curating artisan Italian, Spanish, and French gourmet ingredients alongside an in-house prepared-foods line. It serves food enthusiasts and hospitality professionals via a flagship Auckland store, nationwide online delivery, and trade accounts.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Sabato industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Specialty Artisan Food Retail
- NAICS
- Other Specialty Food Retailers (44529), All Other Specialty Food Retailers (445298), Frozen Food Manufacturing (31141)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating Places (5812), Miscellaneous Food Preparations & Kindred Products (2090)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Mediterranean/Greek/Italian/Spanish Grocery Stores (CRAHAFAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Prepared Foods & Catering-Focused Specialty Stores (CRAHAGAM), Cold Prepared Foods & Meal Components (Sides, Proteins, Family Meals) (CRAHAKAC), Frozen Ethnic & International Meals (CRADADAE)
Keywords
Where Sabato is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Auckland
- HQ country
- New Zealand
- HQ region
- Oceania
Offices1 record
Markets served
Sabato business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Specialty Food Retail: Sale of artisan Italian, Spanish, and French gourmet ingredients through physical retail store and online e-commerce platform. Product categories include pantry ingredients, frozen meals, baked goods, cheese and charcuterie, oils and vinegars, and specialty items.
- From Our Kitchen Prepared Foods: Production and sale of frozen ready-to-eat meals, baking products, canapes, soups, and desserts made in Sabato's own kitchen under Executive Chef Kate Fay's leadership.
- Gifts and Hampers: Sale of gift baskets, hampers, and gift vouchers for special occasions and corporate gifting.
- Cookware and Kitchen Products: Sale of cookware, bakeware, ceramics, glassware, and kitchen utensils alongside food products.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Individual product pricing across 500+ SKUs |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
Sabato product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Sabato sources and retails artisan Italian, Spanish and French gourmet ingredients through a flagship Mt Eden, Auckland retail store and a nationwide Shopify-powered e-commerce site. The company also produces an in-house "From Our Kitchen" range of frozen ready-to-eat meals, soups, canapés, desserts and baked goods under Executive Chef Kate Fay, alongside gift hampers, cookware and home goods. Complementary offerings include cooking classes, a customer loyalty programme and a trade accounts service for hospitality professionals.
Product overview
Sabato is a fine food e-commerce and retail platform specializing in artisan Italian, Spanish, and French gourmet ingredients and products. Founded in 1993 by Jacqui and Phil Dixon, the company operates both a physical store in Mt Eden, Auckland and a nationwide online store. The core offering consists of the 'From Our Kitchen' product line—frozen meals, baking, canapés, soups, and desserts prepared in-house under Executive Chef Kate Fay—alongside an extensive portfolio of imported artisan products organized into categories including pantry ingredients, baking products, chocolate, coffee and tea, condiments and sauces, confectionery, crackers and chips, fish products, fruit preserves, honey and syrups, mushrooms and truffles, nuts, oils, pasta and gnocchi, rice and grains, spices, vegetables, vinegar, wine, cheese and chilled products, health and wellbeing items, and gifts and home goods. Sabato also offers a loyalty programme, cooking classes, and trade accounts for hospitality professionals. The platform is powered by Shopify e-commerce infrastructure.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- From Our Kitchen (Frozen & Baked Prepared Foods)
Companies that use Sabato
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Sabato technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Sabato partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators3 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Sabato competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Williams-Sonoma: Global specialty retailer of premium kitchenware, cookware, and gourmet food. Comparable to Sabato in combining curated gourmet pantry items with high-end cookware/bakeware and gift assortments, though at considerably larger scale.
- Eataly: Global Italian-themed marketplace combining retail, restaurants, and cooking schools with curated Italian pantry and prepared foods. Comparable to Sabato's Italian artisan focus, in-house kitchen, and cooking class program, with the same brand pillars at a much larger scale.
- Dean & DeLuca: Iconic US-based premium gourmet retailer specializing in imported European artisan foods, gift hampers, and prepared foods. Comparable to Sabato in premium imported assortment, gift hamper offering, and food enthusiast customer base.
- Farro Fresh: NZ specialty supermarket chain offering premium fresh, organic, and gourmet foods with in-store dining. Comparable to Sabato as a NZ premium food retailer with both pantry and prepared food offerings, though broader in assortment and larger in store footprint.
Regional players
- David Jones Food Hall: Premium Australian department store with a flagship gourmet Food Hall offering imported European specialty items, cheese, and prepared foods. Comparable to Sabato's premium positioning and Italian/Spanish/French curation focus, though operating only in Australia.
- Ducanis Italian Butchery & Deli: Auckland-based Italian specialty butcher and deli with imported Italian goods and prepared foods. Comparable to Sabato's Italian artisan focus and Mt Eden location, with overlapping customer base in Auckland.
Direct peers
- Nosh Gourmet Food Market: New Zealand gourmet food retailer offering imported specialty foods, pantry items, and gifts via physical stores and online. Directly comparable to Sabato in assortment, customer demographic, and omni-channel model.
- La Parma Providore: New Zealand Italian specialty retailer offering imported Italian gourmet products and artisan ingredients. Highly comparable to Sabato's Italian/Spanish specialty focus, serving the same food enthusiast customer segment in NZ.
- Moore Wilson's: Iconic Wellington-based New Zealand specialty food retailer offering premium gourmet ingredients, in-house prepared foods, and a curated multi-category selection. Directly comparable to Sabato as a long-standing NZ gourmet destination with both physical retail and e-commerce channels.
Emerging players
- La Boîte à Lard / Foodies Organics: NZ online specialty food retailers focused on organic, imported, and gourmet pantry items. Comparable to Sabato's online e-commerce channel and gift hamper offering, often at lower price points and with a narrower gourmet/organic focus.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Sabato social profiles
Digital presenceSabato financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Sabato leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Sabato funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Sabato 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 Sabato
What does Sabato do?
Sabato sources and retails artisan Italian, Spanish and French gourmet ingredients through a flagship Mt Eden, Auckland retail store and a nationwide Shopify-powered e-commerce site. The company also produces an in-house "From Our Kitchen" range of frozen ready-to-eat meals, soups, canapés, desserts and baked goods under Executive Chef Kate Fay, alongside gift hampers, cookware and home goods. Complementary offerings include cooking classes, a customer loyalty programme and a trade accounts service for hospitality professionals.
Is Sabato a public or private company?
Sabato is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Sabato founded?
Sabato was founded in 1993. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Sabato based?
Sabato is headquartered in Auckland, New Zealand, in the Oceania region.
How does Sabato make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Specialty Food Retail is the primary driver. The others are from Our Kitchen Prepared Foods, gifts and Hampers and cookware and Kitchen Products.
Who are Sabato's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Williams-Sonoma, Eataly, Dean & DeLuca and Farro Fresh. Regional players are David Jones Food Hall and Ducanis Italian Butchery & Deli. Direct peers are Nosh Gourmet Food Market, La Parma Providore and Moore Wilson's. La Boîte à Lard / Foodies Organics is listed as an emerging player.
Does Sabato have an API?
No public API is recorded for Sabato.
What industry is Sabato in?
Sabato's product category is Specialty Artisan Food Retail. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRAHAFAJ, Mediterranean/Greek/Italian/Spanish Grocery Stores, with a secondary code of CRAHAGAM, Prepared Foods & Catering-Focused Specialty Stores. Its NAICS code is 44529 and its SIC code is 5812.