Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Aug 9: Food delivery platforms Ownly and magicpin are seeking to expand their presence in India's food delivery market, citing growing restaurant participation and order volumes across major cities.
The developments come as more platforms seek a foothold in the country's food delivery sector, while restaurants are pushing for greater control over commercial terms, discounts and customer-facing promotions.
Anshoo Sharma, founder and CEO of magicpin, said the platform had witnessed growth across major cities, with both restaurant partnerships and daily orders increasing.
"Restaurants appreciate the transparency we bring to the table and as a genuine alternative, with operations across top major cities throughout India. It is our restaurant partners and customers who have helped us to become India's third-largest food delivery app, and we only see a growth trajectory going forward," Sharma told.
"We have experienced growth across all the major cities across India, and our operations continue to run smoothly, with steady growth in both restaurant partnerships and daily orders," he added.
Aravind Sanka, co-founder of Rapido and Ownly, said the platform was already generating significant order volumes for some restaurant partners.
"If restaurants continue to see better economics and customers continue to get transparent pricing, growth will follow. Our focus is on increasing restaurant participation, order density and making Ownly the preferred platform for everyday food ordering," he said.
Sanka said India's food delivery market remained under-penetrated and had room for multiple players.
"Competition is good. It keeps everyone honest. Food delivery in India is still massively under-penetrated, so there's room for multiple players," he said.
Ownly is currently focused on strengthening its operations in existing markets and plans to expand to more cities after establishing its operating model, Sanka added.
The comments come amid negotiations between restaurant bodies in Bengaluru and food delivery platforms Swiggy and Zomato.
A section of Bengaluru restaurants had threatened to disengage from Swiggy and Zomato from August 15. Following negotiations, the deadline has now been deferred to August 31.
Ananth Narayan, Bengaluru chapter head of the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI), who participated in the negotiations, said restaurants had deferred the proposed boycott until August 31.
He expressed optimism that the minutes of the meeting would be signed by all parties by Monday or Tuesday, "in all probability", which could help resolve the issues.
Narayan said the entry of more players would not hurt the industry and could instead expand the market and benefit restaurateurs.
"When the market is big, 2-3-4 more players coming in wouldn't damage anybody. The more players, the more the industry will grow, and the more restaurateurs will prosper. It's a win-win for everybody," he said.
He said India's food delivery industry was likely to move away from a duopoly in the coming years as more players entered the market.
The Bengaluru negotiations have also focused on discounts and promotional offers on restaurant orders.
Narayan said Swiggy and Zomato had agreed to an OTP-based opt-in SMS mechanism requiring restaurants' approval for discounts, promotional offers, platform-specific validity and other related matters.
He said restaurants had faced several instances in the past where discounts were levied on their offerings without approval and where full refunds due to them were not issued.
"We told them (Swiggy and Zomato), from September 1, we will decide what to do. It is not a gun to their head, it is simply that the restaurant industry cannot survive on these terms," Narayan told.
Swiggy and Zomato did not respond to requests for comment on the issue.