Sauce is a company built for restaurant owners to own their online ordering, delivery logistics, and customer data rather than relying only on third-party marketplaces. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Sauce founder and CEO Li-ran Navon to gain a deeper understanding of the company.
Li-ran Navon’s Background
Could you tell me more about your background? Navon said:
“I’ve always been an entrepreneur at heart. Before Sauce, I worked on a number of ventures, including one of the first voice-ordering systems, called Say2eat, that started in a Coca-Cola Incubator Program. This evolved eventually into what we built with Sauce. I’ve spent my career focused on the intersection of technology and hospitality, constantly looking for ways to give small businesses the same advantages as the big players.”
Formation Of The Company
How did the idea for the company come together? Navon shared:
“I worked in restaurants and I did delivery (including flower delivery), that plus what I learned at Say2eat led me to Sauce. We saw how restaurants were losing access to nurturing the relationship of their own customers to third-party delivery platforms. We had a simple idea to create a solution that puts restaurants back in control by providing the infrastructure to power their own delivery programs without the complexity of traditional third-party delivery, and lower costs.”
Favorite Memory
What has been your favorite memory working for the company so far? Navon reflected:
“We love to hear from our restaurant partners and they regularly tell us that Sauce has helped them fix delivery – Improving customer experience, eliminating operational headaches and driving repeat business.”
“One of my favorite memories was hearing from Poke Bowl, a fast-casual poke chain with 11 locations in Manhattan. Jonathan Hausner, the owner, shared that their rapid growth made managing delivery and customer service issues challenging. As he put it, ‘Dealing with complaints and refunds was time-consuming and costly for us.’ Partnering with Sauce, Poke Bowl gained access to a network of couriers, allowing them to streamline deliveries and reduce wait times. Jonathan noted, ‘It feels like we have access to an army of couriers’”
Core Products
What are the company’s core products and features? Navon explained:
“Sauce offers a fully managed first-party ordering and delivery platform that integrates directly with restaurant websites. We handle the delivery logistics and use strategic AI aid operations and drive repeat orders. Our platform is designed to boost customer retention while restaurants focus their attention on creating great food that customers will come back to time and again.”
Challenges Faced
Have you faced any challenges in your sector recently? Navon acknowledged:
“The restaurant industry is navigating rising labor costs, employee shortages, inflation, tariffs, and rapidly-changing customer expectations. For us, the challenge is helping restaurants adapt to these needs without adding extra costs or requiring them to build a new technology.”
Evolution Of The Company’s Technology
How has the company’s technology evolved since launching? Navon noted:
“Our tech is always evolving with changing needs of the sector. We not only support speedy, precise delivery but also empower restaurants to personalize the customer journey by sending AI-powered targeted offers and deals. This allows restaurants to grow their customer base, where third-party delivery doesn’t allow them to access data on their customers to improve marketing campaigns.”
Significant Milestones
What have been some of the company’s most significant milestones? Navon cited:
“We’re proud to have expanded our footprint into new U.S. markets, partner with nationally recognized restaurant brands, and see measurable results in customer retention and reorder rates for our clients. We’re also proud to share these milestones:
- Saving over $20 million in third-party fees for local restaurants in 2024
- Expanding into key markets like New York and South Florida
- Launching our AI-powered retention engine, with early adopters seeing a 20–30% boost in repeat orders
- Growing our team toward the 100-employee mark”
Customer Success Stories
When asking Navon about customer success stories, he highlighted:
“We’ve worked with restaurants that saw delivery revenue increase by over 30% after switching from third-party to Sauce delivery. Our AI helps to create personalized offers which means that every restaurant has a different recipe for success, and can tailor the offers to meet their customers needs.”
“One of our most successful customer stories comes from working with Jorge Llapur, who owns Cuban Guys, a fast-casual restaurant chain specializing in authentic Cuban cuisine. When the pandemic hit, Jorge’s ability to pivot his business from 70% dine-in to 100% delivery and pickup was truly impressive. He shared with us, ‘If I have 10 different orders going to 10 different places, Sauce can get me 10 different drivers and execute those orders flawlessly.’ Supporting his restaurant through that transition and helping them drive repeat business has been incredibly rewarding for us.”
Growth
When asking Navon about the company’s growth, he revealed:
“Sauce is growing steadily and is well-positioned for long-term scalability. We’re focused on sustainable growth that benefits both our team and our restaurant partners.”
Total Addressable Market
What total addressable market (TAM) size is the company pursuing? Navon assessed:
“We’re addressing a massive opportunity in restaurant and retail delivery. There are over 600,000 restaurants in the U.S., most of which are still dependent on third-party apps. We want to help them scale their business even further with our personalized service.”
Differentiation From The Competition
What differentiates the company from its competition? Navon affirmed:
“Unlike ordering apps, Sauce takes a holistic approach to delivery and offers a unique end-to-end solution that not only provides ordering channels, but also looks after the entire delivery process through order tracking, support, refund, reconciliations, feedback, retention and more . We empower them to nurture their customer relationships. We help restaurants build loyalty and grow their customer base.”
Future Company Goals
What are some of the company’s future goals? Navon emphasized:
“We’re focused on expanding our AI capabilities, growing our partner network, and continuing to help restaurants meet the needs of the market. We want to be the go-to solution for delivery.”
Additional Thoughts
Any other topics you’d like to discuss? Navon concluded:
“Independent Restaurants deserve better tools to help them operate efficiently. We believe the future of food delivery should be transparent, brand-owned, and designed with the unique needs of both owners and customers.”
