Uber Eats created more jobs for marginalised groups
Uber Eats, one of the leading food delivery companies, has created more jobs especially for females and first time recruits and meeting over millions of orders in just two cities within the first year itself.
Celebrating one year of Uber Eats
Uber Eats Sri Lanka Lead Head Bhavna Dadlani in an interview with the Sunday Times on Tuesday said that they had received an amazing reaction to their service over the past year and wanted to continue but was cautious of where they intended to expand to next.
She noted that Uber Eats will expand next year and similar to Colombo and Kandy they will move initially into the big cities.
The delivery service will be enhancing its product offering of scheduling orders on the app; Ms. Dadlani said adding that it would in future become more user friendly with a wider selection. Any order can be placed from two different restaurants as well.
Females and other marginalised have been employed by Uber Eats, she said noting that this has created a new workforce and thereby creating financial independence for more people who have not had jobs previously.
More virtual restaurants have also joined the group of partner restaurants and there has been a steep growth in the number of delivery partners as well, the Lead Head for Uber Eats in Sri Lanka explained.
In 2018 the company has been able to deliver more than 3 million orders and the variety is growing with the increasing number of virtual restaurants coming up, Ms. Dadlani said.
Harpo’s CEO and Founder Harpo Gunaratne told the Business Times that this new system has changed the dynamics in the restaurant business. It’s a lifestyle and even young kids download the app and order their desert after school, he said.
This new service has helped the small time businesses and start-ups to take off and those who did not have a platform to sell their own product, he explained.
Uber employs international standards and ensure delivery partners maintain hygienic standards even in terms of dress code and appearance, Mr. Gunaratne said.
However, this has not killed the dining-in culture either, he observed adding that the system is working both ways for the customer and the restaurant as more orders are coming from new clients.
But he still believes that the “human touch” is important and pointed out that their own hotline to order is still open and they would continue to do so to satisfy their clients. Launched in Colombo in 2018 Uber Eats offers a diverse set of 34 cuisines on the app and has expanded to two cities across the country, a media release issued by the company stated.
The largest order stood at a value of Rs.51,000 while an Uber Eats delivery partner satiated cravings of hundreds of customers by single-handedly completing around 4,900 orders; and the hungriest customer placed over 700 orders and an average of two cuisines have been tasted by a single customer. Deliveries are made within 30 minutes.