4/6/21

Over 100 independent restaurant owners, fed up of paying commission rates of up to 35% to delivery services, have registered with the Secret Takeaways platform to drive business directly to their door and form a united front against third-party delivery companies like Deliveroo, Just Eat and UberEats.

The pandemic has changed the landscape of takeaway food with high-end restaurants joining the scene, and existing takeaways revamping their offering; and lockdowns expediating a shift in consumer consciousness toward spending locally with independent businesses.

However, most consumers are unaware when they order from their favourite local restaurant through one of the big apps that a third of their money is siphoned off to cover fees. Many also don’t know that it’s usually cheaper to order from a restaurant directly, as prices are often higher on delivery apps in order to justify the hefty commission. 

Secret Takeaways offers a platform that links the hungry consumer with their local restaurant’s ordering system. The user experience is at the heart of the platform, turning food ordering from an endless scroll to a journey of discovery that encourages engagement between the restaurant and the customer. The customer can search by location and category and view a variety of takeaway and 'at home' options.

Clara Gomes, community manager at Secret Takeaways said:

“Our listings aren’t just bland menus, they tell the brand’s story and showcase their offering making the ordering process a much more human experience. For example, one of our member restaurants, The Pakora Bar, is run by three brothers who want to share their mother’s cooking with the city they love. Deliveroo don’t tell you that. But we do. Deliveroo also won’t tell you that when you order directly from The Pakora Bar, it’s 15% cheaper.”

The big three delivery apps compete with each other for the consumer’s attention. They spend a fortune to acquire customers and it’s a race to the bottom. We don’t have Snoop Dogg onboard and can’t compete with them on ad spend, but we aren’t trying to. We’re equipping restaurants to compete with them and our message is clear – save money and support local, it’s a win-win.”

The platform launched in Edinburgh today and is rolling out to cities across the UK in the coming months with international markets in the pipeline for 2022.

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https://secrettakeaways.com/

Instagram: @secrettakeaways

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About

Before food delivery apps, everybody had a drawer of menus in their kitchen. Then delivery apps came along, bought up all the consumer demand and sold it to restaurants for exorbitant prices. Secret Takeaways is the evolution of that drawer and they aim to replace food delivery apps all together.

In March 2020, Secret Takeaways was just a simple webpage with a list of local, independent restaurants offering takeaway during lockdown in Edinburgh and London. Importantly, none of the restaurants were listed by the big three delivery apps. As soon as it went live it went viral and was picked up by press, but it was still just a fun side project for founder Callum MacPherson, who says:

“Unfortunately the big three apps hold most of the consumer demand, so restaurants are at their mercy. At the same time Deliveroo loses a lot of money each year, it’s clear long term it’s going to get more expensive for consumers as well and even less sustainable for restaurants. Change is needed.”

“Thanks to off the shelf software, it’s easy for restaurants to have a website where they can take orders directly. If they don’t want that tech, they can still take orders over the phone. That is surely preferable to losing a third of your revenue, it’s a no brainer. But it still leaves the restaurant with the consumer demand issue, now you’ve got your website or app, how do you get people flocking to it?”

You won’t find Nando’s or McDonalds on Secret Takeaways. It is a place for independent brands that have their own ordering processes. They have partnered with some of the best brands in Edinburgh including Civerinos, Bross Bagels, Chop House, Lioness of Leith, Luxford Burgers and about 100 other great Edinburgh restaurants, many of whom consumers might not have discovered yet.

Initially, Secret Takeaways believe they will sit alongside Deliveroo on the consumer’s phone until the decision to support local becomes a habit, and big tech apps are deleted.

Callum continued: “We’re not another food delivery app, forget food delivery apps. Delete the delivery apps.”

Restaurants and takeaways are charged a flat monthly fee for membership, starting at £100 per month, saving them thousands of pounds in commission.

What the Secret Takeaways community is saying:

Bross Bagels: “Supporting Local has never been more important. If the pandemic has taught us anything; it's that we are STRONGER TOGETHER, so teaming up with such an incredible list of Edinburgh's top independent foodie spots for the Secret Takeaway is exactly how we want to enter the new world. And being able to offer direct delivery is such an incredible feeling - knowing that our bagel lovers are able to FILL THEIR HOLE as intended.”

Civerinos: “F*&k Deliveroo”

Tupiniquim Brazil Crepes: “During the pandemic many businesses like Tupiniquim were forced to pay Deliveroo's commission rates. As an independent business owner, I can't survive this way so I'm so pleased to see Secret Takeaways offering an alternative that actually helps independent businesses rather than exploiting them.”

Hurly Burly Brewery: “We are a very small microbrewery - more like a nano or pico brewery actually.  We only sell our beers locally and benefit specifically from direct orders.  We like our customers to know about us and the beers that we produce, the local provenance of the ingredients and the care taken in the brewing process so particularly enjoy it when customers seek us out and when new customers discover us.”

Burger Mama @ Lioness of Leith: “We do not like the commission that Deliveroo / Uber Eats etc demand. We believe our product travels well, but we do not always get the consistent delivery times to ensure the customer receives the best experience. We hope to launch our own delivery service some day in the not-too-distant future, in the meantime, with the warmer and hopefully drier months ahead, we feel a direct order / collection from us, provides great value and a better customer experience. We also hope to launch new takeaway specific premises very soon.”