These days we came across so many startups who are trying to bring some innovative solutions for the customers but few of them actually deliver to the expectations. But DONE, a cloud based order management solution company has already proved their excellence in the domain within a year of its inception. The company has already bagged many projects with leading F&B chain in India. Himanshu Khona, Director at DONE Solutions talks to DT on their solutions and strategy for Indian market.
A: The potential of the delivery format has gained traction with the evident success of prominent pizza chains in India, such as Dominos and Pizza Hut, which have derived 40-65% of their revenues from the delivery format. In fact, with the seamless ordering platform, gratifications in the form of discount coupons, and compensation for delay in delivery, one can build a loyal customer base which even fetch their brand the word of mouth publicity.
A: If there’s one thing which one can bet on to be a revolution in future, it’s Mobile. The advent in Mobile technology has a direct effect on every domain in India, and F&B industry is no different. Applications now not only ease the ordering process for customers but also form a bridge between restaurant owner and customer, so that they can engage directly.
A: The technology landscape for restaurants is scattered in India. The Management and Analytics solutions are fragmented in the F&B industry, and it is difficult for the restaurant owners to merge and manage these solutions. DONE is slated to become de facto because it will serve every technology solution needed to run a restaurant in a single package, from Dine-in to delivery, including payments and customer loyalty. This sector has attracted many eyeballs as investors have recently embraced it with open hands. We are witnessing startups providing different kind of services to customers such as bringing chefs under one roof, allowing customers to design their own dish etc. Although many brands are coming up with lucrative offers and unrealistic discounts to lure the customers these days, but only the quality of the product and the level of direct engagement will decide, who will eventually survive.
A: In 2010, smartphone trend in India was on a rise but it was still the beginning of the graph. Around 20% of the people had smartphones, the rest were happy with their feature phones. We knew that the Mobile App market had a huge potential in future, so we started working on Mobile app development projects. Year 2013 was the turning point for us, when Box8 (a QSR named poncho then), approached us seeking an effective solution for marking their digital presence and enhancing their order management. We worked passionately on the project, and the product turned out to be amazing. We received requests for a similar solution from more clients, the product improved with every updated version and it became our core competency. On deeper research, we found that there was a dearth of Order Management Solution in the F&B industry. We did forward and backward integration to create a complete platform for Order Management, CRM and Analytics and hence, DONE was founded.
A: Our Order Management system provides multiple modes of ordering avenues to our clients. The customers can order via any medium, Web, App & Call, as per their preference and convenience. While we take care that none of your interactions or orders gets missed, the restaurant owners can focus on their core activities such as creating more trademark dishes. The CMS system allows them to easily change the Menu, create offers (Combos etc) instantly, and our Analytics platform gives insights to brands to proactively take required actions and retarget existing customers, ensuring customer sustainability. The overall experience makes the work management fluid and effortless. Call centre is one of the pillars of an efficient Order Management process. An in-house call centre ascertains smooth workflow and high quality standards. To ensure this, we set up our own call centre. We provide an exclusive number to each brand and all the orders are redirected to their outlet or kitchen. Our highly trained executives make sure that our client’s customers have a happy ordering experience.
A: Our Revenue Model includes Monthly Rentals, Per Call Cost, Per Web & App Order Cost. Our other Revenue Avenues include Premium Number, Tracking Device, and GPS API. Total Market size of F&B industry is estimated to be Rs. 4,08,040 cr by 2018 which include organized and unorganized sector. Currently, we are focused to target chained food service market which is estimated to Rs. 33,250 cr.
A: The process becomes very complicated if one has to install a software and supporting hardware for management. We understood this problem and made all services provided by our platform to be completely cloud based. The only thing which is needed at client’s end is a computer and a printer.
A: Done now handles over 30 brands, 150 outlets majorly across 3 cities viz. Mumbai, Pune, and Bangalore. With French Loaf in Chennai, Hello Curry in Hyderabad and Noodle Box in Delhi, we have started to penetrate the markets in other states too. We are also planning for extending our reach internationally. Some of the other brands who are currently benefitting from our services include Box8, Pizza Corner, Juno’s Pizza, Hangla’s, Naturals Ice-cream, RushHrs, Wok in the Box, Baskin Robbins, 6th Street Yogurt, Torrp it up, Eatsome, Khans, Zaffran, Dumadum Biryani, Kaati Zone, Eatlo etc.
A: We believe in constantly innovating new solutions to cater the needs of our customer more effectively. Our vision is to be the largest food company, and we are planning to do it via a combination of B2B and B2C model. We are currently catering via a B2B model, and constantly tying up with major food brands in order to include the B2C lane as well in our roadmap.
