Taiwan is a food lover's paradise where dining out is an essential part in the lifestyle in Taiwan. This has driven significant growth in Taiwan's food service industry, which includes from Michelin-starred restaurants and franchise chains to independent restaurants to breakfast shops. Despite their market position, many restaurants in Taiwan struggle to fill job vacancies. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant number of skilled food service workers changed careers, creating ongoing labor shortages that persist even as the pay increases. The situation gives rise to the burgeoning development of food service technology. This challenge has driven many restaurant operators to turn to food service technology, both to reduce the burden on their staff and to elevate customer experience.
According to DotDot Global CEO Ting Hsieh, labor costs represent around 40% of total operating expenses, with 60% of that cost directed toward food preparation, and another 30% to 40% toward tasks such as order-taking, payment handling, and packaging. Food service technology helps restaurants reduce these costs significantly. For example, a breakfast shop using these technologies can save between NT$30,000 to NT$50,000 per month. DotDot Global's latest solution, DDPay, is a comprehensive payment platform that supports mobile and credit card transactions for small restaurants, allowing them to enhance customer experience, reduce costs, and boost revenue.
Empowering Small Restaurants in the Mobile Payment Wave
Established in 2019, DotDot Global is dedicated to developing AIoT solutions, food service and retail applications, as well as smart fintech platforms. The company is proficient in synergizing innovative technology and information services to support small to mid-size restaurants or retail stores, large-scale franchises, commercial districts, food courts, and campus cafeterias with business operations and marketing campaigns. DotDot Global's offerings range from online ordering systems, in-store networks, payment service systems, and queue and reward management systems. Its solutions are being used in over 15,000 food service locations and 100 smart service sites, processing transactions that exceed NT$30 million. This volume makes DotDot Global the largest food and retail service platform in Taiwan and the only startup capable of offering a complete suite of food service technology solutions.
Hsieh noted that DotDot Global's first solution, Quickclick, is a self-order system based on LINE that enables customers to place orders themselves, easing staff workload and reducing error rates. Furthermore, after a customer orders through Quickclick, they are automatically enrolled as a member of the restaurant, allowing the business to expand its customer base without human intervention, thereby saving 30% on labor costs. DotDot Global's latest solution, DDPay, takes this further by supporting both cash and non-cash payments, reducing cashier workload, and alleviating labor shortages while also lowering labor costs by an additional 10%. Most importantly, DDPay enables small restaurants, which might otherwise struggle to secure credit card approval, to accept both mobile and credit card payments.
DotDot Global has successfully assisted numerous restaurant brands, including YuLoong, MKK Ramen, and Emperor Foods.
DotDot Global Expands Globally Through Public Cloud Innovation
As part of its services, DotDot Global provides AIoT solutions leveraging AWS IoT Core from Amazon Web Services (AWS). This enables DotDot Global to monitor POS devices worldwide, as well as to roll out software updates or new features that improve the user experience. By joining the Startup Terrace Kaohsiung AWS JIC program, DotDot Global aims to leverage AWS's generative AI resources to develop premium digital marketing tools for food service providers.
Hsieh explains that many Taiwan-based food service providers are eyeing overseas markets. They often prefer locally-sourced POS devices for easier support and maintenance. The key strength of DotDot Global's food service data platform is its compatibility across various brands and systems. Through strong partnerships with global POS suppliers and AWS resources, DotDot Global supports Taiwanese food service providers as they expand into international markets. Additionally, to address the need for skilled marketing professionals, DotDot Global plans to develop an AI copywriting tool using AWS generative AI services. This tool will generate marketing content that boosts foot traffic and strengthens customer engagement, helping businesses maintain a competitive edge in the market.
DDPay – A Payment System Tailored for Small and Mid-Size Stores
Photo: DotDot Global
