Montreal helps restaurants compete with delivery giants

Jacob Cerebrin
The Canadian Press

Luke Rabouin, mayor of the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough, told reporters that the $ 500,000 funding will help create a local cooperative or non-profit organization that can compete with larger delivery services. The city has called for tenders and hopes to work with existing companies.

Robouin said the city’s goal is to help restaurants that face the high cost of delivery services, adding that the takeout bill could be increased by 30%.

Quebec introduced a temporary 20% limit on delivery charges in March, which applies to areas where restaurant dining rooms are closed due to the epidemic.

The city of Montreal is not alone in worrying about the fees that restaurants pay for third-party delivery applications. In December, British Columbia and Ontario temporarily limited delivery charges to 20% of the customer’s total order, but like Quebec, cap dining in Ontario only applies to areas where guests cannot be accommodated.

Franయిois Meunier, vice president of public and government affairs at the Association of Industries Association Restaurant Quebec (ARQ), said he was in favor of the city’s initiative. He hopes to start paying $ 30 for every $ 100 of food they sell on third-party delivery apps after the pandemic sanctions are lifted.

Mr Mayner said his company was already working with local alternatives to third-party delivery applications that charge flat fees – adding that it was better for restaurants than fees based on sales percentage.

Sylvain Charlebois, director of the Agri-Food Analysis Laboratory at the University of Dalhousie, said there have been initiatives to create low-cost competitors for third-party delivery applications in other Canadian cities, and in the case of Montreal the first is run by the government.

Professor Mischa Young, of the University of Ontario in France, who studies urban economics, points out that the use of third-party delivery applications has increased during the epidemic and that Canadians are unlikely to stop using them.

He said governments should help restaurants “adjust to this new reality” by supporting nonprofit applications.

Roberto Casoli, co-founder and CEO of CHK PLZ, a young Montreal startup that develops software for restaurants – including a delivery platform – believes the Montreal idea is good, but says it is “discouraging” for profitability. Companies cannot participate.

According to Mr. Casoli, the city’s investment may not be enough to build a new solution quickly.

“Competition with Uber Eats, Skip and Door Dash is very tough -, 000 500,000 will fall into the sea,” he said.

Starts on the 1st^Is June?

The City has announced a $ 4 million grant for bars and restaurants. These businesses can ask up to $ 25,000 to build decks and make other preparations for the summer. Restaurant groups can submit joint applications up to a maximum of $ 50,000.

Montreal Myers, Valerie Plante, says she hopes restaurants can open their terraces on the 1st^Is June if the COVID-19 situation in the city allows.

This Thursday, Quebec Health Minister Christian Dubey partially rejected his request to open restaurants early next month. Her desire to please voters before the November municipal elections influenced the mayor’s idea, and he suggested that municipal politicians “stay calm.”

Om^{To me} Plante told reporters Friday that she had contacted Mr Dubey, who said that while she understood her problems, restaurants needed to be able to recruit staff and buy supplies.

Opening the terraces may be part of a plan to reopen bars and restaurants “gradually”.

This article was created with financial support from Facebook Stock Exchanges and The Canadian Press for News.