"The Era of Delivery and Takeout Has Arrived"... The Sales Proportion of Dining Establishments Has Reversed

86% of Food Service Businesses Adopt Delivery Service
Delivery and Takeout Sales Surpass Half... "A Symbolic Change"

A survey found that the proportion of delivery and takeout sales in the food service industry is greater than that of in-store dining.

According to the report titled "A Study on the Characteristics of Changes in the Food Service Industry Due to the Expansion of Delivery Services," published by the Gyeonggi Research Institute on the 7th, 86.1% of the surveyed establishments have introduced delivery services. This means that 8 to 9 out of 10 food service businesses have adopted delivery services.

The survey was conducted over one month from October 25 to November 24 last year, targeting 108 food service establishments (excluding pubs) in Gyeonggi Province.

By industry type, Korean food and Gimbap businesses had the highest adoption rate of delivery services at 90.9%. This was followed by foreign cuisine at 90.5%, pizza and chicken at 85.7%, and coffee and beverages at 72.7%. By operation type, franchise establishments (90.5%) had a higher adoption rate than independently operated businesses (80.0%). Additionally, delivery services were more widely adopted in urban commercial districts (94.1%) than in neighborhood commercial districts (83.7%).

A delivery worker is delivering food in Seoul city.
Photo by Yonhap News

Among establishments that introduced delivery services, 77.2% use delivery agencies, while 20.6% use delivery apps but handle delivery independently without going through delivery agencies.

Regarding sales distribution by sales method, in-store sales accounted for the highest proportion at 44.5%, followed by delivery at 32.1%, and takeout at 23.4%. Although the adoption rate of delivery services is high (86.1%), the sales proportion from delivery (32.1%) remains at about 72% of the traditional in-store dining sales proportion (44.5%).

However, when combining delivery and takeout sales proportions, they exceed half at 55.5%, surpassing the sales proportion of in-store dining. Shin Gidong, a research fellow at the Gyeonggi Research Institute, explained, "Compared to the 2021 survey, it can be seen that the sales proportion of in-store dining has decreased, while the sales proportion of delivery and takeout has increased."

Researcher Shin analyzed, "The fact that the sales proportion of traditional restaurant service methods is less than half is symbolic evidence showing a paradigm shift in the food service industry."