Restaurants urge customers to bypass food delivery platforms charging exorbitant fees
By ANGELIN YEOH
- TECHNOLOGY
- Wednesday, 23 Jun 2021
10:54 AM MYT
Some restaurant owners are hoping customers would consider ordering directly from them. — 123rf.com
PETALING JAYA: Local restaurants are urging customers to order food directly from their outlets instead of delivery services that take a big cut.
Some platforms are taking up 35% from each order, lamented Nabila Nazrin, manager of Rahman’s Corner in Puchong, Selangor
“We’re already experiencing lower sales due to MCO restrictions. We cannot afford to share the profit,” she said.
Nabila has started encouraging customers to order directly by contacting the restaurant via WhatsApp.
“We’ll arrange for a third-party delivery service and ensure our customers are comfortable with the delivery fee. Sometimes, I would even perform the deliveries myself,” she added.
Kana Theva, the founder of Pampas Group of Restaurants, claimed that customers will be saving money if they order directly from the restaurants.
“Without the profit-sharing with delivery platforms, we don’t have to mark up our prices.
“Right now, we’re relying on an ordering service that is only charging us a 2% handling fee,” he said.
This is also the case with Kim Hayung, the owner of Moim Modern Korean Cuisine in Selangor, who had to reject delivery services to avoid charging customers extra to offset the fees.
“We’re using mostly imported ingredients in our food preparation so the cost of producing a meal is already high.
“We can’t afford to share the profit at this time with food delivery platforms,” she said.
Kim, who has also been asking customers to order directly, said she has received encouraging responses.
“My customers have even helped to promote my restaurant in their WhatsApp group chats,” she claimed.
