In light of the recent Covid epidemic, cloud kitchens or delivery-only restaurants may seem the only feasible option when considering how to deal with rising rent costs and shrinking profit margins.
Delivery-Only restaurant appears to be a better strategy to manage restaurant business in light of the present situation in the restaurant sector, which includes intense rivalry, expensive leasing expenses, and increasing costs.
By 2027, the global market for cloud kitchens is expected to be worth USD 71.4 billion, with a CAGR of 12.0% from 2021 to 2027. In this blog, We will discuss how can you can Start Delivery-Only Restaurant in 2023.
What is Delivery-Only Restaurant, and how do they Operate?
As the name indicates, this delivery-only or virtual restaurant caters only to customers who want to order food to be taken away, either for delivery or pick-up. This setup prepares the restaurant’s food in a rented commercial or commissary kitchen. A courier picks up food from a Food Delivery Service like Ubereats or DoorDash once it’s ready and delivered to the consumer.
A cloud kitchen may use its website and app for taking Food Orders Online, or it may choose to work with existing meal delivery services. Since Swiggy, Zomato, etc, account for a large portion of these online restaurants’ revenue, they must have a Point-of-Sale system that can handle orders from many platforms. Using this, you wouldn’t have to spend time manually totaling orders from several ordering providers at the end of each day.
Popular Cloud Kitchens are Faasos by Rebel Foods, Hoi Foods, and Biryani By Kilo.
See Also: Top 9 Restaurant Business Trends in 2023
Advantages to Start Delivery-Only Restaurants
- Simplified Ordering System
Online Ordering system for Restaurants replaces the need for in-person and over-the-phone orders. It lessens the possibility of misheard or mistyped delivery orders being entered. The consumer always places orders using an Online Ordering System or app, typing in their information. This eliminates the chance of error while ordering food. All online orders are compiled in one place, making things easier for the kitchen staff. Overall, the ordering procedure at a delivery-only restaurant is easier for both the customer and the restaurant.
- Depend on Demand from Existing Food Delivery Services
The delivery-only concept was developed to run in parallel with existing delivery services. Considering that by 2020, there will have been 45.6 million orders placed through food delivery apps, it’s clear that there’s a growing need for virtual kitchens.
Customers who want to have a takeaway delivered to their door value ease, trustworthiness, and swiftness. A virtual restaurant specializing in delivery considers all these factors to expand its customer base.
- Convenient and Cost-effective Means of Promoting your Business
It is up to the virtual kitchen to create its App with an online ordering system. Since all orders must be placed online, this opens up an online presence for delivery-only restaurants. Despite lacking a physical presence, online eateries may promote themselves through third-party delivery services.
Building a brand through traditional means like storefronts, signage, and billboards can be costly compared to using social media and the internet by delivery-only restaurants.
- Space for Creative Innovations
Restaurant chains with several locations sometimes lag behind the times when it comes to adopting new ideas and techniques. Restaurants that specialize in Food Delivery Solutions have a lot more flexibility. Modifying, expanding, or reducing a menu’s offerings is simple and instantaneous with an online ordering system.
Due to the lack of a physical location, virtual kitchens may quickly relocate to a new site if necessary. There is greater growth potential, as it is less expensive to start multiple delivery-only restaurants than to establish multiple full-service establishments.
By not worrying about the features and functions visible to customers, Delivery-only Restaurants have more time, energy, and resources to focus on innovation.
- Reduced Initial and Maintenance Expenses
Delivery-only restaurants do not have to commit to a long-term lease or acquisition of a physical location. Using a commercial kitchen to run your business will drastically reduce expenses. Flexible month-to-month leases are available in commercial kitchens, and some even offer hourly rates for use.
Strategy to Start Delivery-only Restaurant
It may be significantly less difficult and cheaper to Open Delivery-Only Restaurant than dine-in restaurants. Methods to start delivery-only restaurant seamlessly are: –
- Figure Out Where to Establish the Delivery-only Restaurant
The cheap cost of starting a delivery-only restaurant is mostly due to the absence of a large initial investment in equipment and furnishings. It is easier and cheaper to start delivery-only restaurant than a traditional restaurant because of its location.
Foot traffic, parking, and a fancy site are irrelevant in the cloud kitchen concept. But affordable housing with good amenities like running water and flush toilets is a matter of concern.
You should also consider the demographics of your target market and the nature of the food product you intend to offer when deciding where to set up a restaurant. The ideal spot for your virtual kitchen is somewhere with high customer demand.
- Make a Strategy
Establishing delivery-only restaurant begins with making it suitable for home delivery. Time and temperature are critical factors in food delivery, so it’s important to simplify your restaurant’s processes to ensure every order arrives promptly and stays as fresh as possible. To stand out in the competitive takeout industry, you must determine what makes your business unique.
- Suitable Menu for Food Delivery
Cold food becomes warm, warm food becomes cold, and crispy food becomes mushy if stored incorrectly. Decide a menu of food items that can remain fresh during delivery. Also, try utilizing techniques that will help maintain food items’ authenticity.
- Reduce the Time Spent on Taking Phone Orders
You don’t want to waste your employee’s time by having them take phone orders. If you automate this procedure, your staff will be free to concentrate on other, more crucial tasks. For that you can use Online Restaurant Management System.
- Linking your Restaurant App with your POS System
One of the most effective methods to succeed in a delivery-only restaurant is to choose a POS that is effective for the needs of the Online Ordering App. Customers who order through your website will be delivered promptly and efficiently to the POS.
- Plan your Marketing Strategy
Develop your restaurant’s identity by making a logo, designing an App, and advertising your offerings on various social media sites. A social media presence enables you to communicate directly with customers, which may help you build brand loyalty and get valuable feedback.
- Emphasize on Packaging
Proper packaging safeguards orders in transportation along with advertising and promoting your delivery-only restaurant. Pick out tamper-evident packaging that will keep food safe. Also, add branded products like stickers with your company’s name to make it stand out.
- Decide your Delivery Partners
You may reach a larger audience and ultimately increase sales by utilizing a third-party platform like UberEats, DoorDash, or Grubhub. These sites cost restaurants a cut of their revenue to use their services.
You can choose a service provider whose rates are within your price range by comparing the various other delivery options. Or you can make your own app by Choosing DeOnDe’s SaaS Based Food Delivery Solution.
Final Thoughts
We can guarantee that the delivery-only restaurant trend is here to stay and will only grow in popularity as the restaurant sector adapts to the onslaught of new technologies. Delivery-only models are among the safest and most lucrative options. Use these tips to Start Delivery-only Restaurant and boost the revenue of your virtual restaurant.
