Singapore-based food delivery apps Grab and Foodpanda are expanding into the dine-in space. This is as consumers look to eat out more post-pandemic.
Grab has started testing its dine-in feature across 15 cities in Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia, with plans to expand to Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam as well.
App users can view restaurants’ menus and reviews. They can order and pay via a QR-based system, as well as book their ride to the restaurant. The new feature is also allowing users to pre-purchase dine-in vouchers at up to 50% discounts.
“It not only helps our users discover restaurants, but also makes eating out more affordable. Several merchant-partners are offering attractive dine-in vouchers that can be purchased through the app,” said Tay Chuen Jein, head of deliveries for Singapore at Grab.
Jonathan Woo, a senior analyst at Phillip Securities Research, said that with dining out costs increasing, consumers are looking for deals to save costs wherever they can.
“There’s almost no better feeling than having a good meal at a discount,” Woo said.
He added that Grab can “indirectly generate incremental revenue from dine-in services.” In this instance, revenues are derived from commission fees for each dine-in voucher purchase.
Foodpanda came in first
Foodpanda was the first food delivery companies in Singapore to introduce dine-in features in 2021. Foodpandas Dine-in is currently available in Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Since 2022, over 8,000 restaurants across these countries have started offering dine-in discounts ranging from 15% to 25%.
“We triggered the discussion during the pandemic. Already back then we knew that there would be a life after the pandemic,” said Jakob Sebastian Angele, Asia Pacific CEO at Foodpanda.
According to Angele, the company sees a huge potential in dine-in. But food delivery is currently still Foodpanda’s largest business, followed by grocery delivery, he said.
Investment banking firm Benchmark Company said in an April report, that food delivery has experienced stellar growth in the past three years. But the report added that the 50% annual growth rate, has been showing signs of moderating growth, as consumers resume their normal daily routines and go out more frequently.
Source: globeecho.com
