Marcus Lemonis Teams Up With Grubhub And Friends In Support Of Local Restaurants And People In Need

CHICAGO, Nov. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Marcus Lemonis, best known for his long running hit show CNBC's "The Profit", wants to challenge Americans to give back to their local restaurants and help those who are food insecure during this holiday season and the continued COVID-19 pandemic. Lemonis is kickstarting the "Plating Change" program through The Lemon-Aid Foundation with a $1M donation and a newly formed partnership with Grubhub.

"I'm incredibly grateful to Grubhub and my friends who answered my call for help to create immediate and positive change," said Lemonis. "There is a passion, amongst all of us, to ensure that small businesses feel supported and that people in need have a meal. We're creating a movement where we're giving everyone the opportunity to 'bet on humanity.' 

The "Plating Change" program will work with Grubhub to give back to World Central Kitchen, supporting its Restaurants for the People program, not only helping independent restaurants by purchasing meals and driving direct revenue, but also employees of the business itself and the entire food ecosystem - all while also providing meals for communities in need. A $500,000 donation through Lemonis' The Lemon-Aid Foundation will jumpstart the program and help World Central Kitchen and Grubhub take immediate action in New York City, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, Miami, and Philadelphia, bringing food to those who need it most. 

Over the next couple months, Marcus will donate the remaining $500K to additional charitable organizations that fight food insecurity as well as local restaurants affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.  Marcus will be connecting with notable friends including Kristen Bell, Alex Rodriguez, Pharrell Williams, and NFL Hall-of-Famers Andre Reed and Terrell Davis amongst others across the country to surprise some of their favorite local restaurants with a large "special order" which will help their local eatery earn sales. Each eatery will in turn pay it forward by donating the order to people who are facing food insecurity.

As part of the "Plating Change" program, Grubhub is giving consumers the opportunity to get involved and give back. Starting today through December 31, consumers can take part while ordering in by opting-in to Grubhub's Donate the Change, rounding up their order total and donating the difference to World Central Kitchen. Grubhub will be also donating an additional $100K to World Central Kitchen through their Sound Bites concert series and for members of the Grubhub+ membership program, Grubhub will also match all eligible Donate the Change donations. Additionally, by going to wck.org/platingchange, people across the country can donate to World Central Kitchen in support of the program, whether it's a single meal (value of $10) or more. 

"This year has been a struggle for so many people and businesses around the country, and we know winter will bring a new set of challenges," said Seth Priebatsch, chief revenue officer at Grubhub. "We're so appreciative of Marcus' partnership and contribution to World Central Kitchen to provide meals to those who need them most while also supporting the restaurants we all know and love." 

The "Plating Change" program falls under the newly launched The Lemon-Aid Foundation where Marcus pledged $50M to champion his charitable mission of supporting and investing in underserved communities and small businesses.  These investments will be in the form of loans and equity investments and will be designed to have measurable charitable impact on the communities and businesses being served by the foundation. The foundation also intends to make grants to other charitable organizations that share the same mission and goals. Lemonis intends to apply the same type of rigor that he applies in his own investments to the impact investing of the foundation.

ABOUT MARCUS LEMONIS: 

Marcus Lemonis was born in war-torn Beirut, Lebanon in 1973; and, at nine months old, was adopted by a couple living in Miami, Florida. Marcus has long served as the Chairperson at Camping World and Gander RV & Outdoors. With his efforts, it is now America's #1 source for RVs, camping accessories, RV maintenance and repair. When he's not running his multibillion-dollar company, Marcus is focusing on his other passion by helping struggling businesses get back on their feet. He shows this process on his hit TV show, CNBC's The Profit, a past nominee for the 2018 Critic's Choice Award for Best Structured Reality Series.  Although he was not born in America, he is proud to be living the American Dream through hard work, determination and believing. With multiple ventures on his resume, Marcus can be seen sharing his knowledge through numerous business and entertainment television programs and speaking engagements. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Marcus launched The Business Learning Center, a free of charge, educational tool on his website aimed to help entrepreneurs succeed during challenging times. He simultaneously dedicated $50M towards the launch of The Lemon-Aid Foundation, his charitable mission of supporting and investing in underserved communities and small businesses. www.marcuslemonis.com

ABOUT GRUBHUB:

Grubhub is a leading online and mobile food-ordering and delivery marketplace with the largest and most comprehensive network of restaurant partners, as well as nearly 30 million active diners. Dedicated to connecting diners with the food they love from their favorite local restaurants, Grubhub elevates food ordering through innovative restaurant technology, easy-to-use platforms and an improved delivery experience. Grubhub features over 300,000 restaurants and is proud to partner with approximately 245,000 of these restaurants in over 4,000 U.S. cities. The Grubhub portfolio of brands includes Grubhub, Seamless, LevelUp, AllMenus and MenuPages.

CONTACT: 
Marcus Lemonis: 
Andrea Vividor - [email protected]
Milan Blagojevic - [email protected]

Grubhub: 
Natalie Gerke - [email protected]

SOURCE Marcus Lemonis