Client name and identifying details anonymized at the owner’s request. Numbers are exact.
The starting point
A 60-seat omakase-leaning sushi spot in west Toronto. Pre-engagement, the owner relied entirely on UberEats for takeout (paying 30% per order) and a phone line that nobody answered between 6 and 9pm because the floor staff were busy serving dine-in.
The challenge
The economics were upside down. Takeout volume was real — about 500 orders a month — but UberEats margin was barely covering the cost of fish. The owner wanted to keep takeout going but pull volume off third-party platforms onto a direct channel.
What we did
Built a direct ordering site
Astro + Stripe + Square POS integration. Menu, modifiers, scheduling, repeat-order shortcut. Loads in 1.2s on mobile, takes a payment in three taps.
First-order coupon flow
$5 off first direct order, redeemed at checkout. Promoted via QR codes printed on every UberEats bag and a one-time SMS to phone-order regulars.
Cleaned up GBP and Maps
Updated photos, posted weekly specials, added an 'Order Direct' button on GBP that pointed to the new site. Search visibility for 'sushi west toronto' moved from page 2 to top 3.
Tracked unit economics weekly
Built a Looker dashboard pulling Stripe + Square + UberEats. The owner could see his actual margin per order across all channels for the first time.
The first time the dashboard showed me direct orders had passed UberEats in volume — that was the moment I knew this was working. We’re still on UberEats, but now we control the relationship.
Results
Ninety days after launch:
- 0 → 950 direct orders/month, with about 40% being repeat customers within thirty days
- AOV $36 → $47 because direct orders surface modifier upsells UberEats menus had buried
- Margin per order +22% vs. UberEats equivalent (saved 30% commission, paid 2.9% Stripe + a small platform fee)
- GBP rating 4.4 → 4.7, helped by tighter ready-time logic and fewer cold-food complaints
- Repeat rate 21% → 38% within the direct channel
The restaurant has now reduced UberEats availability to off-peak hours only.
What’s next
We’re building a small loyalty program (every tenth order free) and starting to test Meta ads for new-customer acquisition aimed at the residential pockets within a 4 km delivery radius.