Q App, which allows restaurant diners to browse the menu, order and pay from their smartphone, has launched in a number of high profile London venues and is preparing to roll out across the country.
The app, which aims to have 250,000 downloads by summer 2014, is now in use at a number of major outlets in the capital, including the Southbank Centre, ETM Group's The Botanist, The Cadogan and Angel and Crown, Glendola's Waxy O'Connor's, Palace Theatre and Konditor & Cook. Plans are underway for nationwide expansion.
The developers say that its format gives venues premium product placement slots to help up-sell higher margin products. It also gathers customer data which can be used for targeted special offers. Q App accepts all major credit and debit cards and alerts customers via their phone when the order is ready for collection, and allows users to specify their collection time-slot.
The founders also say the streamlined ordering process has not only seen an average 10% rise in orders across participating venues, but also cut operating costs and boosted average order values.
The app is available on both iPhone and Android and was developed by a group of digital entrepreneurs and hospitality industry professionals including Caffè Nero's Paul Ettinger; Tom and Ed Martin of the ETM Group; Funkin's Alex Carlton and Zoopla's Alex Chesterman.
Ed Martin, co-founder of ETM Group said: "Using the app means we are able to process significantly more orders during busy periods, while the average order value is also noticeably higher as a result of our ability to promote and up-sell additional products. Just as importantly, the customer feedback has been excellent - the convenience provided means our customers don't have to queue so are able to benefit from this virtual VIP treatment at a press of a button."
Tim Bichara, business development director at Q App said it allowed "time-strapped customers" to spend more time socialising while "venues can increase staff efficiency and offer a better service whilst generating more revenue and gaining valuable insight into their customers' purchasing behaviour".