Deliveroo opens first brick-and-mortar restaurant

Deliveroo officially launched the Food Market in Sai Ying Pun, the first bricks-and-mortar yet customer-facing location of the group.Located at High Street, Sai Ying Pun, the Food Market enables customers to order food for takeaway in the shop, while it also prepares food orders for delivery via the Deliveroo platform. Food Market is not new to Hong Kong. Deliveroo Editions in Wanchai started operating last year, positioning itself as a delivery-only kitchen space.“Bringing Deliveroo’s Food Market to Sai Ying Pun underpins our commitment to continued heavy investments in Hong Kong’s F&B industry despite market uncertainties," says Brian Lo, general manager of Deliveroo Hong Kong. "From using proprietary big data to always provide the best selection to customers, to shouldering capital and operational risks so our partner restaurants can expand, Deliveroo’s Food Market concept has the potential to change how restaurants reach consumers and create a more vibrant food industry for everyone in Hong Kong. This is a continuation of our dual online-to-offline strategy as we look forward to future expansion in 2019.”The Food Market will be home to new virtual brands run by Deliveroo’s restaurant partners, which are exclusively available on the platform. For example, Crystal Jade, a Chinese restaurant from Singapore, is launching delivery-only virtual brands Lao Er and Brother Kwok.Meanwhile, Pizza Express will use part of the 1,500 square-foot kitchen space to run a virtual brand Pasta Project. “The Food Market allows customer-facing trials of new concepts to launch in market much faster, just as we have done with Pasta Project. We are confident that this is the start and there is plenty more to come in the near future," said Liam Collette, managing director of international at Pizza Express.Pololi Group also launches KAI and Blazed at the location. “As a small business looking to make a big splash in Hong Kong’s competitive F&B industry, Deliveroo has given us increased reach to more customers who might not have the opportunity to try our food in our stores," said Steph Kudus, founder of Pololi Limited.Lo said Deliveroo is now considering to open more locations across Kowloon and the New Territories where show strong demand for food delivery, but the brand has not come up with a decision yet. A report of CNBC said the new concept will be expanded globally if successful."The Food Market showcases Deliveroo's online to offline expansion. We will keep exploring new opportunities in Hong Kong though we have been facing fierce competition. With the latest addition I am confident that Deliveroo is capable of enhancing penetration in the city," concluded Lo.