Reducing Aggregator Dependency: A Takeaway Owner's Guide

Before you can reduce your reliance on aggregators, you need to know exactly how deep it runs. Most takeaway owners have a rough sense of this, but the actual numbers are often worse than expected. Sit down with your sales data from the past three months and get specific.

• Count orders by channel — how many orders per week come from each aggregator, from phone calls, from walk-ins, and from your own website (if you have one)? Calculate the percentage split. If 90% comes from aggregators, that is a high-risk position.
• Calculate your total commission bill — log in to each aggregator dashboard and add up your commission payments for the past three months. Divide by three for a monthly average. For many takeaways, this number is £1,000–£3,000 per month. Write it down and put it somewhere visible. This is the number you are going to reduce.
• Identify your repeat customers — aggregators make this difficult because they own the customer data. But look at your order history for patterns. Frequent orders from the same addresses or names suggest loyal customers who would likely order direct if given the option.
• Run the stress test — ask yourself honestly: if your highest-volume aggregator suspended your account tomorrow, what would happen? If the answer is "we would lose more than half our revenue", you have a dependency problem that needs addressing urgently.
• Check your profit per channel — a £25 order through an aggregator at 30% commission nets you £17.50 before food costs. The same order direct at 2% payment processing nets you £24.50. When you compare profit rather than revenue, the urgency of shifting channels becomes much clearer.

This audit is not about quitting aggregators overnight. It is about understanding your starting position so you can set realistic targets and measure progress.

The safest approach is to build your direct ordering channel alongside your aggregator presence. You are not turning off the tap — you are opening a second one, and gradually increasing its flow. Target converting 10% of your aggregator customers to direct ordering each month. At that rate, within six months you will have meaningfully shifted your channel mix.

Step one: get your direct ordering live. Set up your own ordering website with a proper menu, payment processing, and delivery zones. It does not need to be perfect on day one — it needs to work. A customer should be able to find your site, browse your menu, order, pay, and receive their food without any friction.

• Use bag inserts on every aggregator order — this is the single most effective conversion tool. A small printed card: "Love our food? Order direct and save 10% — [your website] or scan the QR code." You are reaching a customer who already likes your food, at the exact moment they are enjoying it. Conversion rates of 5–15% are typical.
• Offer better prices on your own site — since you are not paying 25–35% commission, you can afford to price items 10–15% lower on your direct channel and still make more profit per order. Customers notice when the same meal is cheaper. Some takeaways also offer free delivery on direct orders above a minimum spend.
• Launch a simple loyalty scheme — "Order 5 times and get your 6th order at 20% off" or "Earn points on every direct order." Loyalty programmes only work on your own platform — aggregators do not allow them. This gives repeat customers a concrete reason to switch and stay.
• Offer direct-only specials — a dish or deal that is only available when ordering through your website. This creates exclusivity and gives customers a reason to check your site first. "Friday Night Special — only on our website" is a simple but effective hook.
• Track the shift weekly — monitor your order split every week. You are looking for the direct percentage to climb steadily. If you started at 5% direct and you are at 20% after two months, the strategy is working. If the number is not moving, your incentives are not strong enough or your marketing is not reaching enough people.

Be patient. This is not a sprint. Every customer you convert from aggregator to direct saves you commission on every future order they place. A customer who orders once a week and shifts to direct saves you £5–£8 per week in commission — that is £260–£416 per year from a single customer.

The goal for most takeaways is not to leave aggregators entirely. It is to reach a position where aggregators are a useful marketing channel, not a dependency. But there does come a point where the commission cost of keeping an aggregator running is no longer justified by the new customers it brings in.

Look at the numbers, not your feelings. Track how many genuinely new customers each aggregator sends you per month versus how many are repeat customers who would order from you regardless. If 80% of your Deliveroo orders are from people who already know your business, you are paying 30% commission for orders you could be getting for 2%.

• The 50/50 milestone — when 50% or more of your orders come through direct channels, you are in a strong position. Your business can survive without any single aggregator. At this point, you have leverage — aggregators need you more than you need them.
• Keep one for discovery — many successful takeaways keep a presence on one aggregator (usually the most popular in their area) purely as a customer acquisition tool. New customers find them on the aggregator, then the bag insert and pricing incentives convert them to direct ordering. Think of it as a paid marketing channel with a very measurable cost per acquisition.
• The safety net approach — rather than quitting all aggregators at once, drop them one at a time. Start with the lowest-performing platform. Monitor your total order volume for four weeks. If it holds steady (because those customers shift to your direct channel or another aggregator), drop the next one.
• Negotiate before you leave — if you are a high-volume restaurant, aggregators may offer reduced commission to keep you. Use your direct ordering numbers as leverage: "We are shifting to direct ordering. Our commission costs are unsustainable at 30%. What can you offer?" Some takeaways have negotiated rates down to 15–20%.
• Never go fully dark without a safety net — even if your direct ordering is thriving, keep at least one acquisition channel running (aggregator, Google Ads, social media) to maintain a flow of new customers. A business that relies entirely on repeat orders will eventually shrink as customers move away, change habits, or simply forget about you.

The ideal end state for most takeaways is 60–80% direct orders, with the remainder coming through one aggregator that serves as an affordable discovery channel. At that point, you have a resilient, profitable business that you actually control.