Here are five things you need to know for the week of Feb. 22:
- Olo files for IPO
Digital tech provider Olo last week filed for an initial public offering, aiming to raise $100 million.
Founded in 2005 by Noah Glass, the New York-based company has built cloud-based online ordering and delivery systems for an estimated 64,000 restaurants across 400 brands, including Shake Shack, Wingstop, The Cheesecake Factory, Chili’s, Denny’s, Jimmy John’s and Checkers.
With the pandemic rapidly accelerating the move to on-demand ordering and off-premise dining, Olo’s order numbers jumped dramatically to more than 1 billion in 2020, totaling a gross merchandise value of $14.6 billion in the fourth quarter, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Olo isn’t the only restaurant tech specialist with an eye to going public: The Wall Street Journal reported this week that Toast Inc. is also preparing for an IPO. Toast provides payment processing hardware and cloud-based restaurant management software.
Read more here: Restaurant-Software Provider Toast Prepares for IPO
- DoorDash launches accelerator program for businesses owned by women, immigrants and people of color
DoorDash on Tuesday unveiled its Main Street Strong Accelerator Program, including a $2 million fund to support restaurants owned by women, immigrants or people of color in five cities.
Through the program 100 restaurants will receive a $20,000 grant along with eight weeks of specialized educational resources to help restaurants that have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. Applications are open to small operators in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta and Philadelphia.
For eligibility requirements, read more here.
- Consumers ordered nearly $770 billion in food from restaurants in 2020 and more than two-thirds of it was eaten at home.
A report out last week from Paytronix Systems Inc. and PYMNTS found that consumers spent a collective $769 billion ordering food from restaurants last year, with 63% of that — or $486 billion —consumed at home.
Of the $486 billion, 89% was ordered via desktop websites, mobile apps and aggregator apps, the report found. Additionally, 61% of digital food orders in 2020 was spent at restaurants that had only offered dine-in service before the pandemic.
The report also found that consumers spent 50% more on average when they placed orders online for takeout.
Read more here: Delivering on restaurant rewards
- Tattle teams up with Olo to capture guest feedback
Guest survey collector Tattle is now working with Olo to provide seamless feedback through the e-commerce platform. Mutually partnered restaurants can provide guest satisfaction surveys to those who order using the Olo platform. The technology allows restaurants to measure guest satisfaction through all digital-ordering channels, from dine-in and takeout, to delivery and more, Tattle announced in January.
“With off-premise revenue accounting for anywhere from 60% to 80% of a restaurant’s overall revenue today, the quality of the off-premise guest experience has now become paramount for operators,” said Alex Beltrani, Tattle founder and CEO, in a statement. “Based on our guest data, delivery and takeout experiences have shown to deliver a 20% lower guest satisfaction score compared to its dine-in counterpart, with accuracy and meal packaging incidents occurring at a four-times greater frequency. Without off-premise measurement, restaurants may miss the opportunity for both operational improvement and guest recovery, both of which are key contributors to ROI.”
- Navigation app Waze joins the “Eat Local” movement
Waze is partnering with Uber Eats to encourage consumers to order takeout from local restaurants. The navigation app said earlier this month that Uber Eats-branded pins will appear over locally owned restaurants on the Waze map in 20 cities. Waze users can click on the pin to save the restaurant for later – when they’re not driving. The users will then get a push notification around 5 p.m. reminding them of the restaurant they wanted to try. On those orders, restaurants will pay 0% commission.
Contact Lisa Jennings at [email protected]
Follow her on Twitter: @livetodineout