A long-time technology geek, Andrew Reid was once a leader in Software Release Management at a large insurance company. His responsibility was to find common ground. For example, a specific decision needed to be made on a technical or business direction and the two teams involved were way off. Group A would potentially quit tomorrow if the current situation holds and Group B loved it so much they would almost do it for free. The goal was to get them both in the middle, which was always a struggle.

In September 2019, Andrew left his great corporate job to spend time with his family and build something closer to his heart. Something meaningful that could help small businesses grow and also allow him to spend time with his Dad, who was in a real fight with Cancer. After he was off work for a few weeks, he escaped to a remote location on the Puget Sound, bought some new pencils and a ream of paper, and hunkered down in a hotel to vet several ideas. One idea kept making its way to the top of each page, because he remembered something significant from that old insurance job and making decisions at speed.

Pizza

Pizza, you ask?

Yes. Pizza!

During his tech career, Andrew liked keeping things light and fun in the group. There was a lot of work and planning involved in setting up events, about 20 resources on site. A huge part of that responsibility was to get dinner for the group, because developers like to eat when they code. Especially when they stay late. This was way harder than it needed to be! The standard voting tools offered through email gave the team a choice of the following food options:

  • Pizza
  • Burgers
  • Tacos
  • BBQ
Founder Image

Most nights pizza would win by a single vote. Or maybe it was every night. Anyway, it was enough times to really annoy the folks who wanted something different. Andrew pondered how the team could pick an item that would please them all and keep the troops happy. And the idea for WildAlmonds was born. Andrew formed a small business of his own in May 2020 and started using those reviews to grow a new venture.