{"id":196428,"date":"2023-09-08T13:01:02","date_gmt":"2023-09-08T05:01:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.grab.com\/sg\/?post_type=editorial&p=196428"},"modified":"2025-02-26T18:46:21","modified_gmt":"2025-02-26T10:46:21","slug":"grab-food-delivery-mr-coconut-fire-tiger-bubble-tea-singapore-thailand","status":"publish","type":"editorial","link":"https:\/\/www.grab.com\/sg\/inside-grab\/stories\/grab-food-delivery-mr-coconut-fire-tiger-bubble-tea-singapore-thailand\/","title":{"rendered":"How top drinks brands on Grab make sure their products arrive still chilled"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Drinks are one of the most popular food order types on Grab. Across Southeast Asia, coffee, bubble tea, and coconut shakes constantly top GrabFood\u2019s charts<\/a>.<\/p>

Mr Coconut, a Singapore beverage chain popular for its coconut shakes, has seen its orders growing in recent years as consumers embraced delivery platforms. The company\u2019s co-founder, Lucas Lin, explains that with delivery becoming a significant channel, they had to adapt the way their outlets handled both in-person retail orders and deliveries coming in.<\/p>

Its stores are typically manned by just a single person or a couple of staff, who have to monitor orders coming in on delivery apps<\/a>, take in-person orders at the counter, and make the drinks. When delivery-partners arrive for pick-up, they have to make sure they\u2019re handing over the correct order.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\tMr Coconut had to figure out how to time drinks ordered in-person with those for delivery.<\/b>\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\u201cIt was very labour-intensive in the early days,\u201d Lin said, as the company figured out how to time drinks ordered in-person with those for delivery. Ice-blended drinks are particularly challenging for deliveries, because the store has to aim to have it freshly made and still cold when the delivery-partner arrives.<\/p>

(Read more: Our delivery-partners helped redesign our GrabFood delivery bag<\/a>)<\/p>

On Grab\u2019s end, we upkeep that standard with the help of predictive analytics, to estimate the preparation time each outlet needs, so we can time the commute for our delivery-partner, achieving that \u201cjust in time\u201d handover<\/a> when they arrive.<\/p>

To accurately predict the time taken for food preparation across different types of orders, we have an in-app feature that prompts merchant-partners to mark orders as \u201cready\u201d once food is ready for collection. Over time, the system will also learn to differentiate orders that require a delivery-partner to come quickly from those that can wait a little longer.<\/p>

Reaching new customers on delivery platforms<\/h5>

Asian bubble tea chain, Fire Tiger, identified early on that delivery platforms were an avenue for new customers that haven\u2019t seen their stores in person. The Thai chain operates in its home country, as well as Indonesia, Cambodia, and the Philippines.\u00a0<\/p>

Nunthanut Eursirisub, who owns Fire Tiger\u2019s parent Ruay Sabai Sabai Co, said: \u201cIf your customers cannot see you, you\u2019ve got to try harder to reach them.<\/p>

\u201cWe had to adapt to sales platforms that serve people\u2019s lifestyles and behaviours, and the convenience factor was undeniably something that came about during Covid-19\u2014and lasted.\u201d<\/p>

That meant making delivery services central to the stores\u2019 output. Early on, they had to troubleshoot some aspects, such as packaging.<\/p>

\u201cDrinks are harder to carry and send especially on motorbikes,\u201d said Eursirisub. So Fire Tiger came up with new no-spill packaging options.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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The brand\u2019s sweet purple potato balls are another product that needed special consideration for delivery. For dine-in, they\u2019re served in a dim sum bamboo steamer. But for delivery, the company designed a food grade paper bag fitted with a rigid cover that the company designed for it.\u00a0<\/p>

This helps protect the dish dust during transportation while avoiding turning soggy so it can arrive in optimal condition to the eater at home.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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F&B outlets should think of delivery beyond just a marketing channel, added Eursirisub. Delivery allows operators the data for supply chain management.<\/p>

Merchants on Grab have access to menu insights such as best selling items, to help them plan their supply orders. They can see customers filed into segments such as new, repeat, and infrequent, to understand what items bring customers back.<\/p>

They can see operational issues flagged too. If there\u2019s high average driver waiting time, it can point out inefficiencies in the kitchen, or that staff aren\u2019t marking items as ready for delivery. An unusually high number of cancelled or timed-out orders, could reveal that service staff aren\u2019t receiving orders or acting upon pending orders quickly enough.<\/p>

For marketing, the merchant portal highlights top performing offers, to point out promotional items or coupon offers which have been more successful at attracting consumers.<\/p>

\u201cDigital tools help us forecast demand accurately. Data analytics also help with logistics and inventory, and it\u2019s something we pay attention to every day to lower costs while maximising profits,\u201d Eursirisub said.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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