Food delivery giant Zomato announced Wednesday that it will offer free take-out services to its restaurant partners. The company said it will not charge commissions. Zomato’s self-service or takeout service has seen tremendous growth with order volume increasing by more than 200% in recent months, the company reveals.
To allow restaurants to meet customer demand, Zomato waives the commission. “So that restaurants can take advantage of this demand immediately, we are making our take-out service available free of charge to our restaurant partners. We will not charge any commission, and we will also waive the payment gateway fees that we incur on all takeout orders, ”Rahul Ganjoo, vice president of products, said in a blog post.
The company says they are live with more than 55,000 takeout restaurants across the country and are serving tens of thousands of takeout orders weekly. It is considered a measure to help restaurants recover.
Customers can choose between the delivery and take-out option offered in the app. Users can also search for all restaurants that offer takeout using relevant filters on the home page of the Zomato app.
The company believes that once take-out charges are eliminated, customers “who are bored with home-cooked food will start eating restaurant food with a safe and convenient take-out option.” “For restaurants that already serve home delivery, take-out offers another avenue to access more customers and further grow their business,” Ganjoo said on the blog.
The food delivery business was one of the industries most affected by the restrictions imposed by the coronavirus. Apps like Swiggy and Zomato had to lay off multiple employees due to lack of revenue. However, since the lockdown was lifted, food delivery apps have limped back to normal. The WHO has also said that food delivery is safe and that people should not fear food packaging.
“We have delivered more than 13 million orders since the first shutdown began in March, and no cases of covid transmission have been reported through food or its packaging. While the above signs have been more than encouraging, we know that: a) this growth has not been uniform, and b) the foodservice industry in general is still far from full recovery. The sector will continue to need all the help to return to pre-covid levels, ”said Ganjoo.
Zomato is working closely with its restaurant partners to ensure that they follow all safety regulations. The company has also urged users to wear masks when leaving their homes to pick up their orders.
