Former Co-op Digital Merchandising Assistant Nathalie Brockmeyer-Jones talks Just Oats journey

Two years ago, Nathalie Brockmeyer-Jones departed Co-op, where she held the role of Digital Merchandising Assistant, with a focus on enhancing the UK retailer’s Deliveroo, Uber, Starship and Amazon ranges.

She has now taken to social media to provide an update on her new venture, healthy, fun fast food specialist Just Oats, including a move beyond a dark store model and the opening of a first physical store.

In a LinkedIn post, she said: “After leaving Co-op, where I worked for four years, I set off to travel for three months. However, I ended up staying in Asia longer than expected. During my travels, I funded myself by doing social media management and content creation for an additional year, which ultimately brought me to Bali.”

“While reflecting on my time at Co-op, where I worked on food e-commerce, I decided to pursue an idea I had back then and go all in...Setting up and launching Just Oats in Bali has been one of the toughest challenges I’ve ever faced. After four months of 18-hour days, I built this business from scratch, starting from just a small idea and hoping it would work. There were many moments when I questioned what I was doing and why I didn’t choose the easier path.”

“But I started this venture with the vision of bringing more healthy, fun fast food options to the market - something I’m very passionate about, especially after experiencing my own health and wellness transformation. The reaction to my business has been incredible!”

After 2.5 months of trading, in addition to the dark store and physical store moves, Just Oats has grown to a team of five, launched a subscription service, and is supplying three established gyms in Bali.

Brockmeyer-Jones concluded: “I can't thank my amazing team enough for making this possible. Their commitment to delivering high quality products has helped us build a fantastic reputation in such a short amount of time. I could never have done it without you all. So forget about acai bowls - it's all about oat bowls. Location two coming May 2025.”

2025 RTIH INNOVATION AWARDS

Physical stores will be a key focus area at the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards.

The awards. which are now open for entries, celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our 2024 hall of fame entrants were revealed during an event which took place at RIBA’s 66 Portland Place HQ in Central London on 21st November, and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by comedian Lucy Porter.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “The event is now into its sixth year and what a journey it has been. The awards started life as an online only affair during the Covid outbreak, before launching as a small scale in real life event and growing year on year to the point where we’re now selling out this fine, historic venue.”

He added: “Congratulations to all of our finalists. Many submissions did not make it through to the final stage, and getting to this point is no mean feat. Checkout-free stores, automated supply chains, immersive experiences, on-demand delivery, next-generation loyalty offerings, inclusive retail, green technology. We’ve got all the cool stuff covered this evening.”

“But just importantly we’ve got lots of great examples of companies taking innovative tech and making it usable in everyday operations - resulting in more efficiency and profitability in all areas.”

Congratulations to our 2024 winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Lucy Porter, and all those who attended November's gathering. 

For further information on the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards, please fill in the below form and we will get back to you asap.