So, Are We Exclusive? McDonald’s, Starbucks, and Wingstop Say No

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Are we exclusive? One of the most anxiety-inducing questions for dating is also a critical one for brands and their relationships with food delivery platforms.

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Between 2010 and 2020, several notable brands, such as McDonald’s, Starbucks, and Wingstop, signed exclusive partnerships with food delivery platforms.

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Food delivery platforms competed for these deals because they wanted to win market share and were willing to sacrifice short-term profitability.

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Restaurant brands opted for exclusivity for several reasons:

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• Lower commissions: As low as 1-5% per sale instead of 15-30% per sale
• Marketing: More visibility on the platform
• Simplification: Customers can go to one platform instead of shopping rates between different platforms
• Innovation: Test new programs (e.g., different delivery models) and features (e.g., increase conversion on their landing page, etc.)

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But, more recently, brands have ditched exclusivity:

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• McDonald’s, originally exclusive with Uber Eats, expanded to GrubHub and DoorDash
• Starbucks, originally exclusive with Uber Eats, expanded to DoorDash
• Wingstop, originally exclusive with DoorDash, expanded to Uber Eats and GrubHub

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Why did they switch their restaurant delivery platform partnerships strategy?

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Customers are delivery-platform loyal, per Restaurant Dive. By signing an exclusive contract, restaurant brands cut off access to customers who prefer certain delivery platforms over others. 

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Some anecdotal evidence supports the business case of using multiple delivery platforms over signing an exclusive partnership. Amid a sales slide, Wingstop expanded its food delivery platform partnerships from just DoorDash to include Uber Eats and reinvigorated growth, per Restaurant Business.