When GrubHub purchased Boston-based delivery service, Foodler, in June, Worcester’s takeout enthusiasts feared that the new company’s reach might not extend as far as Worcester. Scott McDonnell, Rob Simon, and Joe Capone saw the merger as an opportunity for their small startup to find its niche. The trio heads up FoodSquire, a delivery service that looks beyond the consumer interface in order to ensure additional measures of control for merchants and drivers. FoodSquire will launch officially among Worcester area restaurants on January 10th and the company has vowed to remain accessible to all of its customers.
The three Massachusetts entrepreneurs gather for their twice-weekly meetings in what was once the grand hotel lobby at 50 Franklin Street. With average delivery times of under 36 minutes, Capone is hopeful that FoodSquire will prove a worthy competitor for nationally established service providers. And he promises that your meal will still be hot when it arrives (or even cold if you’re partial to fresh rolls from Baba Sushi.)
“GrubHub is a 5 billion dollar company. We are a local company run by local people. We want to work with small business owners and we urge merchants to communicate ideas with us,” Capone told Mass Foodies. FoodSquire’s commission amounts to 4.9%, roughly half of that of its competitors.
The new merchant app will allow for a level of two-tier communication that was never available with previous services. There are no out of pocket costs to participating restaurants who will receive an Amazon Fire tablet to help facilitate transactions. A table reservation system is likewise available for FoodSquire establishments among a number of growing features spearheaded by the web development team.
Food-based rewards and loyalty points will make FoodSquire an attractive option to the Central Mass market. Capone assures that “on the ground” employees are undergoing background checks as they are selected based on their previous driving experience. The app is fully translated in any language supported by Google Translate and will be available for download next month.