Chowking breaks new ground in food delivery

MANILA, Philippines - Chowking is set to break new ground in the quick-service restaurant (QSR) industry with the recent launch of its freshly cooked delivery service.

The company invested close to P50 million to be able to deliver delicious Chinese food fast and freshly cooked right at the doorstep or workplace of its customers nationwide. The new delivery service is available practically any time of the day, from breakfast, lunch and merienda to dinner or even during midnight snack.

Chowking introduced these innovations after market research revealed that customers had difficulty remembering its old delivery hotline and food quality was often sacrificed when orders arrived late due to the lack of available riders.

To gain the confidence to embark on this pioneering food delivery service, Chowking invested in major improvements in its delivery operations and training. All deliveries are now equipped with point-of-sale (POS) terminals so orders can be tracked closely and more efficiently. It also acquired more sophisticated thermal bags to keep food warm longer. Delivery vehicles now also have new carrier boxes for better food handling. Chowking has also adopted key quality control measures to ensure that food orders are 100% complete before riders are dispatched.

Chowking has also set up an easy-to-remember hotline in Metro Manila, 9-8888, and its own call center service in partnership with Ventus, PLDT’s well-respected call center company. “We want to treat our customers as kings from the moment they place their orders,” said Edward Arandia, Marketing Director of Chowking.

Close to 500 riders who have undergone the intensive training ceremonially took their oath to render fast and quality delivery service. The ceremony took place on September 23 in Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City after Chowking held a Chinese food festival motorcade at Market! Market!. As safety is also a priority in Chowking, all riders will now don new Chinese-inspired uniforms with reflectorized stripes.

“It took us around six months of intensive training in all of our 394 branches nationwide to get our delivery operations ready for this new system,” said Basil Bolinao, Head of New Business Development at Chowking. “We also increased the number of riders per store to cut delivery time to 45 minutes maximum.”

At the Sept. 23 launch, Chowking also unveiled a multi-media advertising campaign created by Gallardo and Associates, one of the leading Filipino-owned agencies in the local advertising industry. To demonstrate the freshly cooked quality of Chowking’s food deliveries, a 15-second TV commercial entitled “Stunt Chef” was made, showing a Chowking chef cooking as he rides on his motorbike en route to the customer. The wacky stunt could also be seen in print advertisements and billboards soon.

“This can be iconic,” Arandia said. “It has the potential to become part of pop culture.”