GRAB WHILE IT’S HOT
Delivery services like GrabFood are introducing shared cooking spaces, known as cloud kitchens, to bolster revenue.
Food delivery services are introducing shared cooking spaces, known as cloud kitchens, in a bid to bolster revenue.
Super-app Grab yesterday launched Thailand’s first GrabKitchen in the Sam Yan area.
“In 2019, it is a golden year for food delivery,” Tarin Thaniyavarn, country head of Grab Thailand, said in reference to the increasingly competitive segment.
Under the cloud kitchen concept, space with a ventilation system is set aside for local food merchants that make income from food sales through delivery only.
Like a virtual food court, GrabKitchen can provide a variety of dishes for consumers. This makes it more convenient for customers to order dishes from popular restaurants that may be too far away from home, Mr Tarin said.
Thailand is the second country to launch GrabKitchen. Indonesia has 18 GrabKitchen locations, mostly in Jakarta.
GrabKitchen offers users a variety of curated food selections by leveraging data from historical orders to address cuisine gaps.
Cloud kitchens are strategically located to bridge consumer demand and availability of food selections, while reducing the time for food delivery.
The concept is a convenient way for small vendors to expand the geographic area they serve and reach more consumers using technology, Mr Tarin said.
Cloud kitchens can more easily manage operating costs because they are mostly delivery only, eliminating concerns about capital investment and rent, some of the highest costs for food and drink operators.
Grab uses data to identify a strategic location with a supply-demand gap.
GrabKitchen at Sam Yan now offers dishes from 12 popular restaurants in Bangkok.
Mr Tarin said the company invested in all spaces and facilities, while appliances, water, electricity and labour will be paid for by local merchants.
Grab will charge higher commission fees from merchants at GrabKitchen than those under the normal GrabFood service, but food prices will stay the same.
In the future, Grab aims to earn revenue from restaurant advertising as well, Mr Tarin said.
Grab Thailand expects to serve more than 20 million orders in 2019. Some 4
million orders were made in the past four months, compared with 3 million throughout last year.
Get Thailand, a local arm of Indonesian ride-hailing app Go-Jek, is planning its own cloud kitchen in Thailand. Go-Jek aims to open 100 cloud kitchens in Indonesia.
According to Kasikorn Research Centre, revenue from food delivery apps in 2019 will reach 33-35 billion baht, up 14% from last year.
During the past five years, food delivery app revenue has grown by 10% a year on average, exceeding the 3-4% a year for the overall food industry.