Goodbye Mr Delivery , Hello Mr D

{Source: Bonolo Modise. 2011. Financial Mail . 29 June 2011)

THE popular Mr Delivery with the famous moustachioed chef has undergone a facelift.

The 18-year-old food delivery service company recently changed ownership, and the two new owners

have big dreams for the brand.

David Chait and Alon Rom have pledged to take the firm to new bigger, better, faster heights while

delivering your food hotter than ever.

The changes started with the logo - which previously showed a friendly chef holding a tray of food -

being replaced by a smiley face, as well as the shortening of the name to just Mr D.

Chait and Rom say they are going back to the basics of old-fashioned service delivery to rebuild the

reputation and credibility of Mr D.

"For too long many people have used Mr Delivery by default or with indifference," explains Chait.

'We want to change the mindset and make a platform where people choose to use Mr Delivery over

anyone else. We want to engage with our customers and prove we have the X-factor which sets Mr

Delivery apart from the rest," he said.

The turnaround

For Chait and Rom, entrepreneurship is not a new concept and taking on Mr D was a challenge they

relished.

Chait is co-founder of the Vida e-Caffe brand and former owner of Rikki's Taxis, while Rom used to

be a self-employed fund manager.

When the pair took over the franchise they owned 24 of the 48 Mr Delivery branches, but they

concede it was a major challenge.

Micromanaging the day-to-day running of the individual stores was not a model that worked well, so

they sold the branches to franchisees to focus on the big picture.

'When we took over Mr D had a powerful name and a great brand, but it was just underutilised," says

Rom.

'We knew that so much more could be done if we could fix the operations, because there was already

good infrastructure in place."

New franchise owners now benefit from the full attention of head office, which also provides them with

the tools to run their businesses to full potential.

"The new franchise model works well for us as we are now able to concentrate on providing the

business with strategic direction," says Chait. "We realise that we are only as strong or successful as

our franchisees."

Diversifying is key

While food delivery is at the core of Mr D, the company is exploring new ventures which will increase its revenue.

Mr D holdings has now added an inter-city courier service to its brand as well as Mr D Express, a

non-restaurant and logistics service.

The company hopes the new image will let consumers see them not only as a food delivery service,

but as an "indispensible" personalised service that will deliver just about anything a customer

needs.

"Our drivers will be delivering much more than food, so we want people to recognise our brand as

being multifaceted," explains Rom.

"We will be offering a range of additional services and we hope to eventually become the leading

service provider in last-mile service delivery."

He adds: "The new smiley logo emoticon epitomises the pleasure of receiving fast, efficient service

as well as showing our versatility to deliver more than just food."

With no shortage of passion and enthusiasm, the new Mr D bosses have set their sights on becoming

the leading delivery service provider, no matter what the product.

'We are here to build the Mr D brand to do more than just meet customer expectations. We want to

set the bar to new heights of service delivery."

1.1Conduct a PESTEL analysis for Mr D. (10)

1.2Conduct a SWOT analysis for Mr D. (10)