The open delivery platform allows all restaurants to offer home deliveries. The first restaurant to join has had positive experiences with the platform.
The City of Helsinki’s innovation company Forum Virium Helsinki has developed the Open Logistics Map (OLMap) platform which offers restaurants an agile way of organising takeaway deliveries and monitoring them. The goal is to offer new solutions to restaurants when they can only sell takeaway meals.
The delivery platform is an application that is integrated into the restaurant’s online shop. The delivery orders are automatically transferred to the delivery companies registered on the platform. All restaurants and delivery companies can start using the service free of charge.
Restaurant La Baguette is testing the service in Alppila
The first restaurant to start using OLMap was restaurant-café La Baguette in Alppila. La Baguette’s online shop was integrated into OLMap. Home deliveries started at the start of May.
“The OLMap service is an excellent opportunity for our company to interact with customers online. During the state of emergency, when customers are staying home, every company needs to find ways of delivering their products to the customers. For us, this is an excellent way of doing business,” says Sani Saarinen, owner of La Baguette.
The entrepreneur was surprised at how easy it was to use the app.
“The service turned out to be very easy to use and functional, and it doesn’t require any technical skills. The orders show up in OLMap in the order of arrival. The restaurant and the customer receive a text message on each stage of the delivery until the delivery is at its destination. I hope other restaurants and cafés will see how useful this service is and try it out,” Saarinen says.
The restaurant needs to have its own online shop to integrate the delivery platform. An integration with the Holvi online shop already exists. Compatibility with other online shops will be studied on a case-by-case basis. The first delivery partner on the platform is Pave Helsinki with its bicycle couriers. The restaurants that join the service will be offered free home deliveries during spring and summer 2020.
OLMap is open to all delivery companies. The prices and contracts will be agreed on between the delivery company and the restaurant, for the time being. Using the OLMap platform is free of charge. This means that restaurants and delivery companies can test the model’s suitability for their operations in a completely risk-free fashion.
Modify the service to your needs
The delivery platform was coded by Forum Virium Helsinki’s expert Johan Lindqvist as a part of the New Solutions in City Logistics project funded by the EU and the City of Helsinki.
“Smart solutions support the residents and businesses of Helsinki and make everyday life easier. For restaurants, this currently means offering new sales and delivery options, among other things,” Johan Lindqvist says.
Forum Virium Helsinki will be developing OLMap for the needs of the participating restaurants and delivery companies for the duration of 2020. The platform is open-source, which means that anyone can further develop it for their own needs.
Entrepreneur: if the platform piqued your interest and you’d like to try it or ask for more information, please contact Johan Lindqvist / johan.lindqvist(at)forumvirium.fi / +358 (0)50 543 6657
Photos: Jussi Hellsten
Further information
Johan Lindqvist
Mobile: +358 50 543 6657
johan.lindqvist(at)forumvirium.fi
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