OrderIn's digital canteen comes with tax benefits

©Cathy Yeulet via 123RF

Food subsidies are not 'added benefits', they can be considered a business imperative. That's according to 60% of Fortune 500 companies, including the likes of Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Deloitte and Goldman Sachs, who offer some form of food benefit to staff.

OrderIn worked with SARS to incorporate tax-deductible meals into its app. The result? Companies can now register and offer employees an 18% to 45% tax break on all food ordered with OrderIn during office hours. Dimension Data, Media24 and Societe General have already signed up to offer a wider variety of food and lower overheads.

“There are only a handful of countries in the world that have such favourable tax laws. Historically only the largest companies in South Africa were taking advantage of this, thanks to technology and a few years on Wall Street, we discovered a way to digitise and democratise this benefit for all employees,” says OrderIn founder and CEO Dinesh Patel, a Durban native who experienced the value of virtual canteens, like seamless.com, during his years at Goldman Sachs in New York.

Bringing his knowledge home, Patel set out to disrupt the traditional food delivery model with transparent pricing and cost innovations. "We pride ourselves on being 100% transparent - our app clearly shows when you’re paying in-store pricing and when you’re paying more. We’re also the only app to guarantee that 100% of the delivery fee and tip goes to the driver."

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In five years OrderIn has processed almost one-million orders and employs 40 staff in two offices, achieving 1,000% growth in the last two years alone. Patel is working on new value-adds, like gamification that enables employees to score points for choosing healthier meals and wellness goals. According to the company, if it has its way, its virtual canteen app will become a mainstream employee benefit, alongside healthcare and pension.