Macari chip shops embrace the digital age
By Maurice Garvey
ADVANCES in technology have permeated many facets of life – even traditional chippers are embracing the digital age with relish.
One such traditional takeaway, Macari’s in Castletymon, recently signed up with Flipdish, an app which provides businesses with a custom-made platform to promote their brand and maximise their customer base.
Unlike some other food sites, Flipdish redirects customers to the official site of the restaurant owners, who in turn can easily manage the data, including aspects like heat mapping to see where areas are performing well.
“It’s more of a personalised set-up,” said Giovanni Macari, who operates the Castletymon takeaway.
“We are one month online with Flipdish. It is very flexible. We get access to information and data. Based on what I have seen with the data, we will broaden our delivery area and extend to Killinarden and Jobstown.”
Macari’s Castletymon was established by Giovanni’s father Rocco in 1982.
Now retired, Rocco opened the first Macari’s in Tallaght on Main Street in 1972, then Castletymon, followed by another takeaway in Old Bawn in 1992.
“We are all independent businesses but respect each other,” said Giovanni.
“The pricing is different, there are different costs and customer needs in the area, but we buy from the same suppliers. For me it is important to be consistent. The best way to compete is to keep it simple.”
Giovanni believes the Flipdish app is simple to manage, but also has the right support structures for any technical issues.
He continued: “It is very good in that sense. Some things you can do yourself. In the back office I check out the customer service and history, and can see if there is a problem. You have some basic support, but for anything more complicated, you can ring them.
“It is a very hands-on business. You’ll never have someone else do things for you. The good thing is once you fine-tune it and start with something, it’s always important to keep it that way.”
