Munich Startup: Who are you and what do you do? Please introduce yourselves briefly!
Cornelia Weinzierl: I'm Cornelia, 23 years old, and the co-founder and CEO of Melon. We are a digital platform, where you can share and enjoy homemade, vegan food with people from your area. As a community platform, we address current topics such as sustainability and conscious nutrition and create dining opportunities across the board that make a more diverse society possible.
Munich Startup: What problem does your startup solve?
Cornelia Weinzierl: It's important to us to make everyday changes to our eating habits possible. We want to become pioneers of a sustainable food revolution, break down stereotypes, and enable a diverse society. With Melon, we're doing just that: bringing together a diverse range of people to enjoy homemade, vegan food together.
Community spirit despite Corona
Munich Startup: But that's been around for a long time!
Cornelia Weinzierl: Melon is the only digital concept on the German market that enables vegan food sharing. Sharing food is a fundamental aspect of our existence and one of the most important ways people come together. It was time to bring this concept of sharing into our digital age.
Munich Startup: What have been your three biggest challenges so far?
Cornelia Weinzierl: Our biggest challenge, of course, was the coronavirus (ironically, since we launched our community platform at the beginning of the pandemic). Because: Is community during the coronavirus pandemic even possible? We think so: absolutely! Now is the perfect time to try out new recipes, take advantage of our "to go" option, support each other, and thus find culinary and interpersonal variety in your immediate surroundings.
The question of financing also put us to the test, but was quickly answered: From the very first draft of our platform, we had support from our investor Stefan Höglmaier and were able to aim for a globally scalable project with Melon.
The third challenge was clearly putting together the right team. But we're fortunate: we have a great, motivated, and diverse team with flat hierarchies.
“Melon combines the best of what Munich’s startup culture has to offer”
Munich Startup: Where would you like to be in one year, where in five years?
Cornelia Weinzierl: Our goal for this year is to build a diverse and consistent offering in Munich, Berlin, and Hamburg. Our current focus is on the Munich area and expanding our reach nationwide. Therefore, we're thrilled to be participating in VeggieWorld Berlin, Hamburg, and Munich this year. Over the next five years, we plan to expand into the European market, specifically focusing on Austria, the Netherlands, and Denmark.
Munich Startup: How do you rate Munich as a startup location?
Cornelia Weinzierl: Munich has a strong startup culture—especially in the tech and B2B sectors. Melon combines the best of what Munich's startup culture has to offer: food, sustainability, and technology.
Munich Startup: Cook yourself or have someone cater for you?
Cornelia Weinzierl: It's hard to say, both are beautiful! I do love booking on Melon, though. Seeing how much love, dedication, and passion go into preparing the dishes makes me incredibly proud of what we've achieved so far and gives me incredible positive energy for everything that's yet to come.
