WhyQ teams up with FairPrice to offer zero-commission food-delivery service

HAWKER food-delivery startup WhyQ has joined forces with supermarket operator FairPrice Group to pilot a new food-delivery platform that does not charge merchants commissions or onboarding fees. 

Called Marketplace@WhyQ, the platform is especially targeted at smaller food and beverage (F&B) merchants, WhyQ and FairPrice Group said in a joint statement  on Friday. Instead of charging commissions, Marketplace@WhyQ will instead implement a 6 per cent markup on the food price, which will be used to offset payment gateway and server costs for the platform. 

The initiative is in response to the lack of affordable food-delivery options for merchants amid the circuit-breaker measures. Incumbents GrabFood, foodpanda and Deliveroo charge commissions of between 30 and 40 per cent, which has drawn criticism for being too steep, especially for hawkers with thin margins.  

Close to 100 merchants, including hawkers and restaurants, have so far registered to get on board Marketplace@WhyQ. Familiar names on the platform include the stall Beng Who Cooks, run by two young Singaporean hawkers; heritage brand Li Xin Fishball Noodles and popular hotpot restaurant chain COCA. Merchants using the platform can opt to tap WhyQ's delivery capabilities or do their own delivery. 

Seeing the number of F&B merchants hit by the circuit-breaker measures, FairPrice Group had been searching for a solution to address their concerns, said Seah Kian Peng, Group chief executive of NTUC Enterprise and FairPrice Group, in the statement. 

"We are glad to announce this partnership with WhyQ, in which FairPrice Group acts as an enabler for local food businesses who wish to ride the digital wave and adopt digital solutions to access new revenue streams," he said.

Varun Saraf, co-founder of WhyQ, added: "The idea is to encourage as many F&B players, especially the smaller food establishments, to operate delivery-enabled virtual stores at no cost, and to pass on discounts to benefit consumers to order online. 

"We are glad to have found a partner in FairPrice Group, which shares our vision of empowering local food businesses and supporting our local food vendors, especially during this tough period." 

Marketplace@WhyQ, owned wholly by WhyQ, is a separate platform from its hawker platform "WhyQ: Shiok Hawker Food Delivery", which is a food-delivery service for stalls in hawker centres only.