If you have a restaurant or cafe, sign up with us today. Photo / Supplied.

New player in meal delivery industry hits 1.5 million orders.

In this opinion piece, Gursharan Sandhu, a director at meal delivery company Order Meal, believes restaurants cannot afford to ignore the role online ordering can play in their businesses.

As the number of Kiwis ordering meals online continues to rise, it is becoming more important for restaurant owners to be open to this income stream.

Surveys show there has not only been strong growth in the online delivery market over the past 12 months, but it is expected to strengthen even further in the next few years – a trend very much reflected in our business at Order Meal.

The New Zealand based company offers its services to many regions of New Zealand. Photo / Supplied.

A recent study by global online market research organisation Statista, predicts growth in online food deliveries in New Zealand of nearly 10 per cent between now and 2027, with the number of users expected to hit 1.87 million. While it is understandable if restaurants are still happy with dine-in only, this data shows that if they want to run a successful business, they need a combination of takeaway, delivery and dine-in.

Customers are used to online ordering now. The big shift came after Covid; this is when people began to love ordering not just meals but many other products and services from the comfort of their homes. App usage has been particularly popular among younger Kiwis and will become even more so in the years ahead.

So, it obvious the food market is changing. There are way more cafes and restaurants in every suburb and while the competition between them is increasing, the number of customers is still about the same, although, in many cases, the number of dine-in customers compared to two or three years ago, has decreased.

With more choice available, it’s way more important for businesses to be open to all income streams. Online ordering apps play a great role in this trend.

This was obvious even pre-Covid with a New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) study showing food apps added around $59,000 to the 2019 revenue of restaurants using them, about $19.6 million in total. It also found that 26 per cent of the orders came from people who would not have usually chosen a restaurant meal.

Customers have a choice to pick up their food or have it delivered at your place. Photo / Supplied.

At Order Meal we started out in 2017 with zero customers. Today we work with 600 restaurants throughout New Zealand and in that time have handled around 1.5 million orders. We deliver thousands of meals every day.

Unlike other companies we don’t charge hefty commissions rates which is a big plus for customers as the cost-of-living continues to rise. From time-to-time we do special promotions and the feedback we get from our clients is that we are very affordable, while still offering a high level of service.

Our focus is providing online ordering and food delivery. Customers also have an option to pick up their orders. We also do table reservations (we are partners with Google for Reservations), have Eftpos, POS (Point of Sale), gift cards and are a one-stop shop for restaurants and cafes as we offer most of the digital services they require.

Restaurants’ food grades are displayed on our website so, when you order, you can see what food grade that restaurant has.

We offer an excellent support to both clients and customers, low set-up costs and a complimentary website to restaurant owners who sign up with us. Our customers tell us our system is easy to use and works great on all devices including mobile phones – a plus for them and for restaurants wanting a competitive edge.

Our response time is very quick, and we process any complaints and refunds within 24 hours.

To register your restaurant/cafe/store go to: www.ordermeal.co.nz/restaurant-signup/

For more information go to: www.ordermeal.co.nz or to download the App, click here: www.ordermeal.co.nz/#omApp