78 | FORBES ASIA MAY 2018Forbes Life
S
outheast Asia startups are tapping into Asia’s love of
food at a discount. Bangkok-based mobile applica-
tion Eatigo, which is backed by American travel giant
TripAdvisor, ofers discounts of up to 50% during
nonpeak dining periods. Chope, a Singapore-based restaurant-
booking platform, rewards diners for making reservations with
points they can exchange for restaurant vouchers. Malaysia-
based startup Ofpeak has a model similar to Eatigo’s, except
that it focuses more on restaurants that are trendy.
he discount apps steer more business to food-and-bever-
age establishments, helping to ill empty seats. Customers may
be getting 50% of, but they oten make it up to the merchant
by ordering extra items, such as appetizers, says the veteran in
this sector, Australian Donna Benton, who started he Enter-
tainer in 2001. All the companies compete in diferent ways
with the remnants of U.S.-based discount-app giant Groupon,
which sold its Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia business-
es to itness subscription service KFit over the past two years;
the platform was rebranded as Fave. Groupon had already shut
down its hailand and Philippines operations in 2015.
“he Entertainer app is deinitely convenient, especially
given that quality food in Singapore tends to be rather expen-
sive,” says Samuel Wittberger, 22. “As someone who really en-
joys eating, apps like he Entertainer and Eatigo make good
eats more accessible on a more frequent basis.” He says he has
racked up some $180 in savings since he purchased he Enter-
tainer app in January, and uses it about twice a month.
Benton got the idea for he Entertainer ater she moved to
Dubai and noticed that many restaurants were largely empty. She
decided that she could connect these merchants with custom-
ers who were seeking new experiences and better value. Today
he Entertainer ofers buy-one, get-one-free deals at more than
10,000 restaurants, attractions, spas and hotels in the Middle
East, Europe, Africa and Asia, where the regional headquarters
is in Singapore. Businesses in her network range from big fast-
food chains such as KFC to casual joints, high-end restaurants
and ive-star hotels. But while many promote one-for-one dealsonly for speciic days or times, the restaurants and other ven-
ues signed up by he Entertainer must ofer deals that are valid
seven days a week during both lunch and dinner. “We didn’t
start the one-for-one business model. We used it diferently,” says
Benton, 44, who is also the company’s chairman.
She says the irst few years were tough, as she went door-to-
door persuading merchants to come onboard, before training
them. “You need to do as much as you can because you can’t
aford to employ anyone,” she recalls. Now the company has
more than 300 employees and the bulk of its revenue comes
from the yearly subscription fee it charges, which varies be-
tween markets. It also ofers white-label services to more than
200 customers, which include big names such as HSBC and Ci-
tibank. It works with them to customize voucher books, pro-
motional booklets, websites and mobile apps as part of their
loyalty and rewards programs. Benton says its most proitable
market is Dubai, followed by Abu Dhabi and Singapore.
he Entertainer’s Asia push came in 2013, when it made a
foray into Singapore and then set up shop in Hong Kong, Ma-
laysia and Bali. he region, which is known for its food and its
digitally savvy consumers, serves up a platter of opportunities,
says Benton: “It’s a food lover’s paradise. It has a vibrant food
culture, which is rapidly evolving. It has many food options
from street food to ine dining, as well as a broad selection of
both Asian and Western cuisine.”
Eatigo, for its part, brands itself as a yield-management
company. he startup aims to help restaurants increase their
proitability by illing more seats and boosting revenue, says
Michael Cluzel, Eatigo’s chief executive and cofounder. In-
stead of ofering subscriptions, Eatigo charges establishments
a fee for each diner the app brings in. Diners download the
free app and choose from a menu of restaurants, select a time
slot along with its corresponding level of discount and make
a reservation. As with he Entertainer, its discount ofers
range from casual to high-end restaurants. “We’re very agnos-
tic as to whether it’s fast food or restaurants,” he says. “What
matters is that the place is popular. Eatigo isn’t a marketingDinnertime
BY PRISCA ANGMobile-application startups revamp old discount
models to feast on Asia’s burgeoning foodie crowd.