Rapido on Tuesday launched its much-anticipated food delivery platform ‘Ownly’ in Bengaluru, starting with three areas — Koramangala, HSR Layout and BTM Layout — with the application live on the Play Store.
As reported by FE earlier this week, the pilot launch, which was initially planned for July, had been delayed by over a month due to some procedural hurdles. The launch comes with Rapido’s promised zero-commission model intact. The platform will charge restaurants flat delivery fees with no commission on order values, while customers will not pay any platform fees, departing from industry norms where established players Zomato and Swiggy charge additional platform fees.
Zero-Commission Model and Pricing Structure
“Built to empower restaurants and offer consumers fair and transparent pricing, Ownly is set to rewrite the country’s food delivery landscape,” the company said in a statement.
Key features of the platform include zero commissions for restaurants, allowing them to retain the full order value and transparent flat delivery charges with no hidden fees or markups. This aligns with the pricing structure that Rapido had previously agreed upon with the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) and the Bruhat Bangalore Hotels Association (BBHA).
Under the finalised rate card, orders exceeding Rs 400 attract a delivery fee of Rs 59 (including GST) entirely paid by restaurant partners, while orders between Rs 100-400 incur Rs 29.50 in total fees for restaurants. For orders below Rs 100, costs are split between customers (Rs 23.60) and restaurants (Rs 11.80).
Breaking into a Duopoly Market
The launch represents Rapido’s entry into the duopoly-dominated food delivery market, where it aims to differentiate itself through its no-commission approach. The company has also committed to not introducing subscription fees for restaurants for at least one year from service launch.