KUALA LUMPUR: Delivery players are quite the big winners following the Covid-19 Movement Control Order imposed by the government effective yesterday until March 31, with some recording more than 30 percent jump in orders.
Concurrently, the number of marts and restaurants eager to be on board delivery platforms also increased significantly.
DeliverEat.my, which was established in 2012 saw restaurant requests rise by 300 percent.
“We operate in Kuala Lumpur and Penang. We see similar order growth trends in both regions,” DeliverEat Sdn Bhd chief operating officer Leong Shir Mein told Bernama.
Besides DeliverEat.my, Foodpanda, Grab and dahmakan have indicated that their food delivery operations will continue as usual during the two-week period.
In addition, Grab said it is looking to introduce car-based delivery service to ensure a continuous income stream for its driver-partners.
A rider with GrabFood estimated he has delivered 20 to 30 percent more during the Covid-19 outbreak, allowing him to earn more than before.
“I commend Grab for subsidising masks for us and introducing contactless deliveries to ensure we are not exposed to the virus,” he said.
Meanwhile, e-commerce platform company, Shopee is operating as usual and continues to see a higher demand for daily necessities and household items such as disinfectants, hand sanitisers and surgical masks.
“There is limited stock in the market for some of these products especially surgical masks and sanitisers.
“We are working very closely with manufacturers and suppliers to ensure these essentials are able to reach consumers’ hands without disruption,” Shopee’s regional
managing director Ian Ho said.
He noted that more people were shopping online for such necessities but acknowledges that Shopee is not able to draw a direct relation to the trend with Covid-19.
“There are many other factors that drive sales like our recently-concluded 3.3
Mega Sale, which offered users products like laptops, smartphones, TVs and vacuum cleaners for only half the price,” he said, adding, Shopee has just launched a ‘fresh produce’ category.
Ho said given the strong local product presence and wide assortment on Shopee’s platform, users can easily find a substitution for international products.
“We are also grateful that Malaysia is a producing and manufacturing nation; hence, we are quite self-sustaining,” he said.
For Pos Laju, it is business as usual without any change in the number of parcels
received and processed.
“However, because of Covid-19, some delay is inevitable in the delivery of international mails from and to China,” according to its spokesperson.
The spokesperson said the duration of the delay could not be determined as many airlines had either suspended or reduced their frequency.
Amidst higher demand, QSR Brands (M) Holdings Bhd, the operator of more than 1,100 KFC and Pizza Hut outlets nationwide is serving customers via takeaway, drive-thru and delivery. – Bernama
