Quickness RVA

If you are a country bumpkIn lIke me, then the concept of bike delivery may be an intriguing one. One business that provides this service to Richmond is Quickness RVA, a bike delivery service located around the VCU area. The way it works is simply place an order at any of the restaurants that work with Quickness and a cute boy on a bike shows up with your order.

Quickness RVA started in June 2010 with delivery service for Strange Matter. Some other great spots they work with are Lamplighter Roasting Company, Cous Cous, Alamo BBQ and Fresca on Addison. The full list of restaurants, along with menus for each, can be viewed on their website. Quickness RVA is owned and operated by New York native Frank Bucalo, who was thrilled to answer a few questions for us.

BY RACHEL KISCADEN PHOTOS BY ANNA SCHERBAKCOVA

Who is behind the company?

The company is owned solely by me; however, I have had the strong support of two of my riders that have been with Quickness from the beginning. Also, my friend Mike Gogniat, who is the brains behind the logo, has been a huge help with design work from the get-go.

What is your mission statement?

To provide affordable and sustainable delivery options to the Richmond community.

How many people do you have working for you?

Currently, Quickness RVA has seven highlyskilled contractors. Some have only been with us a few months, others a few years. Three others and I work full-time and the rest are part-time.

Do you have a main place you operate around?

We have a space in the Fan that we run things out of. It’s rented from a community print shop on Main Street called Studio 23. We have been renting space from them for about two years already and they are great! Always something going on there and we are constantly meeting creative and inspiring people there.

What are your future goals for the company?

We would like to expand beyond the area we currently service and start doing more than food. For example, we keep getting asked to deliver for Video Fan. We’d love to deliver for a local grocery store like Ellwood Thompson or the new food coop that will be opening up. We would also like to help out small local businesses like PJ Pets, which now have to compete with a PetSmart on the next block. We’d also like to help out local business owners with running specific errands around town so that they can focus on their own stuff. For example, bank runs, post office runs, ran out of tomatoes in the middle of lunch at your restaurant, etc.

What gave you the idea for this company?

The idea stemmed from me feeling under the weather and wanting to get some food delivered. As much as I love both pizza and Chinese food, it’s not what I wanted at that particular time and I questioned as to why I couldn’t get something from one of the many awesome Richmond restaurants, at which I enjoyed. So that got the gears rolling and then from there I just started approaching the local restaurants that I love!