Delivery has become a point of contention between McDonald’s and its franchisees, as operators say that the delivery costs hurt their profits, thanks to the fee they have to pay to Uber Eats for those orders.
In a survey by the National Owners Association, McDonald’s franchisees overwhelmingly support having the service. But the vast majority of them are unsatisfied with the economics and believe the company and the delivery provider should negotiate a better commission.
The dispute brings to mind one of the industry’s potential failures as the delivery trend has taken hold: In their rush to offer the service, chains might not have done enough to demand better rates from the providers while they had the opportunity.
…Last year, according to Technomic, the five largest delivery providers generated $10 billion in sales, up 55% from the prior year.
If they maintain that level of growth this year, the combined delivery providers would generate roughly the same sales as Starbucks.