Dan Figone, founder and owner of Handheld Catering and Events, recently gave an interview to the New York Times. He talked about the changing ways Silicon Valley tech start-ups are celebrating their IPOs.
The New York Times Discusses 2021 Silicon Valley IPO Celebrations with Handheld Catering
Here is the excerpt featuring Dan Figone:
How Do Silicon Valley Techies Celebrate Getting Rich in a Pandemic?
“When the pandemic hit a year ago, tech workers worried that their start-up stock might never pay off. The whiplash, plus general unease about the economy, has now discouraged them from making the kinds of splurges that often accompany overnight fortunes, Mr. Rubin said. Compared with past booms, there is “more gratitude,” he said, and more plans for charity.”
“Silicon Valley’s cash-gushing, millionaire-minting initial public offerings have been bigger and buzzier than ever. But in the pandemic, the newly rich aren’t celebrating with the usual blowout parties and early retirement into round-the-world travel.
They’ve adapted.
The parties are on Zoom, the tax talk is on Slack, the house shopping is slightly less intense, and the vibe is cautious. It’s a weird time to become rich.”
Gourmet Bark
“When tech start-ups went public before the pandemic, they celebrated with rocket-shaped ice sculptures and fleets of 1980s bands.
Now companies are sending their employees party boxes for Zoom gatherings.
Daniel Figone, owner of Handheld Catering and Events, has recently delivered boxed dinners and snacks to homes for a number of workers at Silicon Valley companies that went public. The boxes — which cost $45 to $100 each — can include housemade rubs, finishing salts, hot cocoa mix, gourmet bark, fancy cheeses, fruit and champagne. Inside, printed cards rivaling a wedding invitation detail the login code for a Zoom gathering.
Top executives get even more: Floral arrangements, three-course meals and an on-site chef to finish the cooking and plate it, Mr. Figone said. At some small outdoor gatherings, he has offered individual “grazing cones” filled with snacks, instead of buffets and passed appetizers.”
The Silicon Valley Caterer Helping Newly-Public Tech Start-ups Celebrate Their IPOs.
As this New York Times excerpt makes clear, Dan and Handheld Catering have actively reinvented their own business to cater to this new pandemic-driven IPO celebration vibe. They have increased their in-home catering for private events. They created new event menus and staging for micro-weddings. And Handheld certainly expanded their line of boxed meal services, especially for companies with essential workers.
“It has been quite a journey these last 12 months,” says Dan, “but in the end for us it has been a truly exciting time of creativity and invention!”
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