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0 pointsab_testing5y ago0 comments

COVID-19 is like the golden age of food delivery. If these food delivery apps are not profitable now, they will probably never be profitable. When the severity of COVID subsides in a few years, people will like to go out to eat again rather than have it delivered.

0 comments

iso16315y ago

The only reason I could think of to use something like ubereats, deliveroo, justeat, etc would be if I wanted a non-pizza delivered while I was staying in a hotel in a strange city somewhere.

If I'm at home I'll look at the menu of my favourite indian/chineese/whatever place, phone them up, and they deliver it as they have done for decades.

I've spent two nights in a hotel since March, normally it's 70 a year. One night I ordered a dominos as I got back to the hotel just before 2300. The other night I ate out with a supplier.

Likewise with Uber, if I'm at home and not flying off somewhere, I'm not going to be ordering a taxi, either to get to the airport, or when I'm in a strange city on the other side of the planet.

I can see this is the golden age of takeaways and home-delivery (which basically means amazon or groceries), but I don't see it for takeaways.

cortesoft5y ago

I get so frustrated when people act like these food delivery services aren’t a WAY better user experience than the old version of having to call for delivery.

So many times, I will be super busy with the kids, or work, or housework, and I will just pull up DoorDash with one hand (while the other is feeding a hangry 1 year old) and hit ‘reorder’ on one of my past meals. Literally 15 seconds and food is on the way.

Compare this to having to call someone, wait on hold, give my phone number/address, tell them my order, correct the mistakes, find my wallet, get out my credit card, give them the number, confirm the number and expiration and security code, then sign a paper copy with the tip when the driver drops it off.

Can I do the old style of delivery? Sure, but man it is a lot easier now.

mrweasel5y ago

Sure, if that's how food delivery works where you live, then I'm sure that the SF/Silicon Vally type services works better. But that's because the service suck where you live.

Most fast food place either use JustEat or Hungry to accept your order and take your credit card information, if they don't have their own website or app. They will have their own drivers, employed and paid directly by the restaurant and they don't expect a tip.

That's what I compare any "startup" food delivery service to. So they will always be worse and more expensive, because a third party is now involved.

1 more reply

sneak5y ago

I wonder if there's a business in building apps specifically for individual restaurants (chains or even local ones, using cookie-cutter apps) that integrates card processing and such; white label doordash. The business would pay a flat monthly fee for the service and would have to have their own delivery people. Apple Pay et c make the payment side of things painless and prevents people having to re-enter details in each app.

Why isn't this a thing? Is it that few/no restaurants have delivery drivers?

I can't imagine many restaurants benefit that much from the discovery features in UE/DD/etc.

1 more reply

Balgair5y ago

Not to trivialize your experiences (toddlers are not easy), but for me, the list you give isn't all that much of a barrier. Yes, it is simpler to use the app, but not all that much more. Also, where I am, they take the credit card at the door, not over the phone. Most use a Square-style card reader attached to a work phone, even the mom-n-pop delivery, even now in the pandemic (they use gloves mostly).

1 more reply

awodol5y ago

The problem is most restaurants in my city unless they're pizza just don't deliver, and this applies to lots of cities across the country let alone suburbs.

iso16315y ago

I wonder if it's a cultural thing, what country are you in?

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rietta5y ago

This was exactly me in Oakland, CA, last year when on a business trip from Atlanta. On the way to the hotel, I was on a shuttle with a pilots and flight crew heading to stay overnight. Was advised not to go walking around by myself. Ended up using Doordash for the first time that night at the Hotel. Now my wife has us on the monthly subscription plan back home because of COVID.

iso16315y ago

> but I don't see it for takeaways

.... from somewhere new

birdyrooster5y ago

Mmm Naan Pizzas are good

WrtCdEvrydy5y ago

Food delivery will probably never be profitable unless you're able to schedule food delivery days ahead... and utilize the same pathing algorithms used for regular deliveries (like UPS and Fedex).

There's a maximum amount of time someone will wait (1 hour) and the product degrades after it's created (cools off)

toast05y ago

I mean, it's not that bad. Delivery is an important part of many restaurants (pizza, jimmy johns (sandwiches), chinese in many cities). The issue in my mind is those restaurants with hugh delivery volume can do multiple deliveries in a single run, and can time the completion of the food to the return of the driver, so the food doesn't spend a lot of time sitting at the restaurant, and neither does the driver.

It's very hard to do that when you're aggregating restaurants and drivers.

WrtCdEvrydy5y ago

Right, but there's an incentive to perform well because if you don't, the food is returned.

Uber can just write off the loss as more and more money is shoveled into it like coal was shoveled into an engine on a trail.

Reedx5y ago

I'm guessing they're just trying to hold on until they can convert to robotic delivery. Then it'll be profitable. In the meantime they're preloading the platform, building brand recognition, etc.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse

0 comments

iso16315y ago

The only reason I could think of to use something like ubereats, deliveroo, justeat, etc would be if I wanted a non-pizza delivered while I was staying in a hotel in a strange city somewhere.

If I'm at home I'll look at the menu of my favourite indian/chineese/whatever place, phone them up, and they deliver it as they have done for decades.

I've spent two nights in a hotel since March, normally it's 70 a year. One night I ordered a dominos as I got back to the hotel just before 2300. The other night I ate out with a supplier.

Likewise with Uber, if I'm at home and not flying off somewhere, I'm not going to be ordering a taxi, either to get to the airport, or when I'm in a strange city on the other side of the planet.

I can see this is the golden age of takeaways and home-delivery (which basically means amazon or groceries), but I don't see it for takeaways.

cortesoft5y ago

I get so frustrated when people act like these food delivery services aren’t a WAY better user experience than the old version of having to call for delivery.

Can I do the old style of delivery? Sure, but man it is a lot easier now.

mrweasel5y ago

Sure, if that's how food delivery works where you live, then I'm sure that the SF/Silicon Vally type services works better. But that's because the service suck where you live.

That's what I compare any "startup" food delivery service to. So they will always be worse and more expensive, because a third party is now involved.

1 more reply

sneak5y ago

Why isn't this a thing? Is it that few/no restaurants have delivery drivers?

I can't imagine many restaurants benefit that much from the discovery features in UE/DD/etc.

1 more reply

Balgair5y ago

1 more reply

awodol5y ago

The problem is most restaurants in my city unless they're pizza just don't deliver, and this applies to lots of cities across the country let alone suburbs.

iso16315y ago

I wonder if it's a cultural thing, what country are you in?

1 more reply

rietta5y ago

iso16315y ago

> but I don't see it for takeaways

.... from somewhere new

birdyrooster5y ago

Mmm Naan Pizzas are good

WrtCdEvrydy5y ago

Food delivery will probably never be profitable unless you're able to schedule food delivery days ahead... and utilize the same pathing algorithms used for regular deliveries (like UPS and Fedex).

There's a maximum amount of time someone will wait (1 hour) and the product degrades after it's created (cools off)

toast05y ago

It's very hard to do that when you're aggregating restaurants and drivers.

WrtCdEvrydy5y ago

Right, but there's an incentive to perform well because if you don't, the food is returned.

Uber can just write off the loss as more and more money is shoveled into it like coal was shoveled into an engine on a trail.

Reedx5y ago

I'm guessing they're just trying to hold on until they can convert to robotic delivery. Then it'll be profitable. In the meantime they're preloading the platform, building brand recognition, etc.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse