While it was a time of great uncertainty, several local businesses saw the opportunity to create new products, moments of consumption or innovate the way they operated, so much so that currently these small businesses represent 41% of businesses available in the Uber Eats application.

People have adopted new consumption habits, such as shopping online, through social networks and other options through apps such as Uber Eats, which allows users to find a variety of dishes and products from restaurants and convenience stores at the click of a button. These consumption trends are reflected in the 170% increase in orders through the app compared to 2019.

Precisely on this platform there are success stories of local restaurants that are worth highlighting for their ways of innovating and adapting to new trends.

Buen Bajon Express: This restaurant was born in 2017, but as of November 2019 it joined the Uber Eats platform. It is a restaurant type "dark kitchen" or ghost kitchen, which is a business model that is based on the preparation of food exclusively for home delivery.

It constantly works on providing burritos, quesadillas, burgers and ribs, as well as wings with a unique flavor, including the sauces they carefully create.

Thanks to the modality with which they work, they currently have a location in the Ciudad Satelite neighborhood of San Salvador, and the projections are to open a new Dark Kitchen to serve customers in the area of Santa Tecla, Merliot, Antiguo and Nuevo Cuscatlan.

"The Uber Eats platform has been our main ally especially in times of pandemic. More than 75% of sales are through the app and in the crisis we did not have to close operations since we are a Dark Kitchen, this allowed us to continue supporting our six collaborators and indirectly to the economy of the delivery drivers", said Alejandro Aguirre, owner of Buen Bajón Express.

Epic Sandwich: Offers a fusion of flavors inspired by the California Lifestyle and is an urban coastal restaurant proposal; its specialties are sandwiches with a wide variety of options. This business sought diversification and decided to create a Dark Kitchen, now in addition to offering this option for home delivery, it also has two restaurants in San Salvador.

Epic's bet goes further and has now become Epic Food Company, which operates four brands Epic Sandwich Shop, Hot Chick, Stacks and Burrico, all under the concept of virtual restaurants, which are also found in the Uber Eats app.

Undoubtedly, it is time to find market niches, listen to customers with their day-to-day needs and leverage different digital tools and platforms to reach regular and potential customers.

Even as we see pandemic restrictions slowly starting to open up, the trend of home ordering remains and will likely continue to grow. Therefore, all types of businesses can benefit from using technology to reach their target group in the "new normal".

Steps to register your business on the Uber Eats app

Entering the following link

1. Submit your business information: To get started fill out a few details, such as your business name, business address, personal contact information and type of contact information and type of establishment.
2. Select your plan: Compare service plans and choose the one that best suits your business that best suits your business. A comparative breakdown is included to help you decide decide.
3. Start receiving orders: After confirming your account information, you will be able to start receiving orders on the Uber Eats platform.

Facts about Uber Eats El Salvador:

Uber Eats has more than 750,000 active restaurant partners in more than 650 cities worldwide in 6 continents.

In El Salvador it is available since november 23, 2018 in the Metropolitan area of San Salvador, Ciudad Delgado, Santa Tecla, Antiguo Cuscatlan, Nuevo Cuscatalan, Soyapango and San Marcos.

It has more than 500 active restaurants on the platform. Currently more than 41% of the partners restaurants in El Salvador are SMEs.

For more information, please visit www.ubereats.com