The City of Toronto and local food-ordering start-up Ritual have partnered up to provide the city's restaurants and foodservice businesses with a free online ordering platform.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have detrimental effects on the food services sector nationwide, the city is working to help businesses survive and generate revenue by making digital ordering more accessible.
Ritual ONE is designed to help restaurants, grocers, butchers and bakeries accept online orders through their own website and social media platforms with ease. This tool provides businesses and customers with the option of contactless ordering, takeout and delivery services without the hefty commission and subscription fees.
Businesses that sign up for Ritual ONE by June 1 will receive a lifetime subscription completely free, so long as it is located within Ritual's serviceable neighbourhoods. Ritual will waive the usual $69.99 monthly subscription and 10% commission fees on all orders, for life.
Businesses enrolled in the City's Shop HERE program will also be eligible for Ritual ONE and a lifetime exemption from commission and subscription fees. Those who are new to the service will also be equipped with a dedicated expert who will support them with setting up their account and navigating through the onboarding process.
The collaborative program is part of the Mayor’s Economic Support and Recovery Task Force initiative and is set to launch June 8, 2020.
“I want to thank Ritual – a Toronto tech success story – for developing Ritual ONE and partnering with us at this critical time as we begin the work of rebuilding our economy,” said Mayor John Tory in a release.
The program was built with insight from Restaurants Canada, a nonprofit organization representing the Canadian foodservice industry.
“As a Toronto-based company, it’s important to us that we help our hometown businesses get up and running while keeping Torontonians safe during this time,” said Ray Reddy, co-founder and CEO of Ritual.
It is through partnerships such as this that support local businesses and help kick start the economy during these trying times that make our communities thrive.
