Entering the food aggregator fray directly, one of the largest restaurant associations in the state, the Kerala Hotel and Restaurant Association (KHRA), has launched a food aggregator mobile application claiming to sell food at a much lower price. The mobile application titled ‘Rezoy’ was recently launched in Google Play Store and App Store and its services are presently available in parts of Kochi city. The KHRA has announced that the service of the app will soon roll out across Ernakulam district, followed by other districts in Kerala.
One of the major features which KHRA officials have highlighted is the low cost of food, when compared to other existing food aggregator apps. “Usually the other existing food aggregators charge heavy commission from the restaurants, ranging from 25 to 30 percent. For many restaurants, this has turned into a non-profitable factor, and what happens is that they are often forced to charge more for items, in order to make profit,” Manoharan, Liaison Officer of Rezoy and Ernakulam District Secretary of KHRA told TNM.
“Now with our own app, we only charge a nominal commission ranging from eight to 10 percent, and will be able to sell food at lower rates,” he added. The officials also say that the price of food while ordering online, will be the same as that of what is charged in the restaurant.
Presently, the service of Rezoy is available in MG Road to Kaloor stretch in Kochi city. About 43 restaurants have become part of the initiative started by restaurant owners themselves. Within March, the service will be extended to parts of Kalamassery and Kakkanad, involving about 400 restaurants. In the following months, KHRA officials state the service will start in districts like Malappuram, Kottayam and Palakkad.
Though the association has attributed the alleged high commission charged by other leading food aggregators as the trigger to start this initiative, officials also state that this is futuristic.
“Some aggregators are already on work to start their own kitchen to sell food. From the service of all these years, they have the precise data on people’s demands. So when this is rolled out, the restaurants are going to incur major loss. That is another reason why Rezoy was started,” added Manoharan.
Even restaurants and hotels that are not part of KHRA will also be able to use the app’s service. Rezoy also charges a one-time fee from the restaurants and hotels, depending on which the commission rate will be decided. If a hotel registers paying Rs 25,000, they will be charged only eight percent commission, if registered paying Rs 10,000, commission will be nine percent, and if Rs 5,000, commission will be 10 percent. The commission is also inclusive of GST, KHRA states.
“We are taking this because we wish to roll out this independently without any other outside investment. So until the company starts making profit, we can meet its expenses with the money from the registration,” adds the Liaison Officer.
According to the officials, there is a positive response for the application with hundreds of users already using it. “The restaurant owners are much excited about this and is extending our full cooperation,” says Muhammad Rameez, a resturant owner part of KHRA.
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