UberEATS, the 10-minute food delivery service and the first standalone app from popular ride-hailing service, Uber, has launched in its first Asian market.
Singapore.
Singapore is one of the richest and most technologically advanced countries in the world, and like its neighbouring countries i.e. Malaysia, it’s also a melting pot of cultures and hence, home to a variety of food.
The UberEATS app will allow Singaporeans to order food from about 100 of the country’s restaurants.
“UberEATS gets you the food you want from the restaurants you love, faster than anyone else. Just open the app, find what you’re craving, and we’ll deliver it right to you.”
For now, deliveries are limited to Singapore’s Central Area, its main business and commerce hub. This includes some of Singapore’s busiest urban districts such as Orchard aka Singapore’s shopping haven. But plans are already in the pipeline to expand its service coverage as well as its menu.
How does UberEATS work? It utilises the same map-routing algorithms Uber uses to connect drivers and passengers as quickly as possible to avoid cancellations.
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How fast can UberEATS get the orders to its customers? According to UberEATS Singapore head Avram Rampersaud, food will be delivered to consumers under 35 minutes from the moment they tap their orders. UberEATS will use a mix of current Uber drivers as well as its own fleet of motorcycle riders to send food to its customers.
But the real challenge lies in gaining and retaining users as there’s already a host of well-established food delivery services in Singapore such as FoodPanda and London-based startup Deliveroo. Will UberEATS customers stay on long after the novelty has worn off? Only time will tell.
Meanwhile, UberEATS first launched in Toronto earlier this year and it is already available in 14 other cities such as New York, Paris, and Melbourne. Singapore was chosen as the first Asian market to get UberEATS for the same reason it was chosen as the first Asian market to get Uber back in February 2013- because it is one of Asia’s top tech hubs.
If it does well in Singapore, perhaps it will soon make its way across the causeway to Malaysia? ;)
Singaporeans can now download the standalone UberEATS app via iTunes or Google Play.
Sources: UberEATS, TechCrunch / Featured image: pinterest.
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