← Business Metric: Industry Specific (Consumer, Services & Financial) (all topics)
Aggregator dependence - restaurants
What it is
Food delivery platforms charge restaurants a commission on order value, typically in the 20-25% range, plus advertising and visibility charges
For a business where store-level margins are thin, the commission can exceed the operating margin on a delivered order
Impact on industries
- Structurally margin-destructive - a 20-25% commission on a business with high fixed rent and staff cost leaves little on an incremental delivery order
- The platform owns the customer relationship and the data, so the restaurant loses the ability to build direct loyalty
- Aggregators deliver demand a single outlet could never generate alone, and extend the catchment far beyond walk-in radius
- Owning delivery is the counter - chains with their own fleets avoid the commission and have posted delivery growth well ahead of dine-in, though smaller operators have no such option