Yelowxpress vs Third-Party Apps: Building a Branded Experience

“Build your own dreams or someone else will hire you to build theirs.” If you run a restaurant, café, or takeaway business, that line speaks directly to you.

Especially if your orders come through food aggregator platforms like Uber Eats or Menulog.

At first, these platforms seem convenient. They bring in orders and handle delivery. But behind that convenience, you give away more than you think.

You lose a large portion of your profits, you hand over your customer data, and your brand becomes just another name in a crowded list.

Here is something worth knowing. Seventy one percent of customers actually prefer to order directly from a restaurant’s website or mobile app instead of using third party apps.

Source – Restaurant Technology News

This tells us one thing. People want to connect with your brand. Not the aggregator.

In this blog, we will explore the hidden cost of relying on third party aggregator platforms, explain how a white label ordering app like YelowXpress gives you control, and show why owning your own online ordering platform is a smarter path for your business.

Let us get started.

The Aggregator Trap: Why It’s Not Built for Your Growth

At first glance, third party aggregator platforms seem like a smart shortcut. They bring traffic. They handle delivery. They help small restaurants go digital fast.

But when you look closer, the cost of using these platforms goes beyond just commission fees. They slowly take control of your customer relationships, your profits, and even your reputation.

Let us look at how this happens.

High Commissions That Shrink Your Profits

Restaurants often pay up to 30 percent commission per order through platforms like Uber Eats and Menulog in Australia. That means for every $50 meal sold, you may only keep $35, and still have to cover ingredient and staff costs. (Source – 7News)

If you are already managing rent, staff wages, and food costs, this commission wipes out most of your margin. Imagine selling a $50 meal and taking home only $33, even before your actual expenses. Over time, you are working harder and earning less.

Aggregator platforms make their money no matter what. You only earn when everything goes right.

You Do Not Own the Customer

Every order placed through a third party app comes with one problem. You do not know who the customer is.

You cannot follow up. You cannot send them an offer. You cannot ask for a review or a referral.

In other words, you cannot build a real relationship with the person who just paid you.

That is a missed opportunity.

He who owns the customer, owns the business.

And when the aggregator owns the data, they own your future too.

You Compete Against Yourself

When someone opens an aggregator app to order from your place, they are instantly shown a list of your competitors. Sponsored listings. Ads. Discounts from other places. Upsell offers from different cuisines.

So even when your customer comes with the intent to order from you, the platform tries to push them elsewhere.

You brought the customer. They took the sale.

Aggregator platforms may feel like a solution, but they are built to serve themselves. Not you.

Now that you know what you are giving up, let us explore a better alternative. One that gives you back control over your brand, your customers, and your profit.

What Is a White Label Ordering App and Why It Works

Customers want to connect with your brand, not a marketplace. That is why more restaurants are shifting to a white label ordering app that puts them in control.

Let us break down what that actually means.

A Simple Explanation

A white label ordering app is a branded digital solution that looks and feels like your business. Your logo. Your website. Your mobile app. Everything carries your identity.

Customers browse your menu, place orders, and track delivery through a system that is fully yours. No competing listings. No third party branding. Just your brand in the spotlight.

This builds trust, improves customer experience, and strengthens your business over time.

Benefits That Put You in Control

With your own online ordering platform, you manage the entire journey—from order to delivery. Here is what that unlocks for you:

• Own your customer data so you can run email or SMS campaigns, track repeat orders, and build long-term relationships.
• Launch loyalty rewards and offers that keep customers coming back—without paying extra for visibility.
• Manage menus, payments, and delivery logistics from one admin dashboard that is easy to use and built for real-world operations.

You are not just listed anymore. You are leading.

As they say, “In business, control is everything.”

Easier Than You Think

Worried it sounds too technical? It is not. YelowXpress is designed to get your business online fast with your own app and website, fully customized and supported by our team.

From the first setup to daily operations, the platform guides you step by step. You do not need to be a tech expert.

Aggregator vs White Label: A Real Comparison

Now that you know what a white label ordering app is and how it works, let us look at how it compares to food aggregator platforms side by side.

This is where the real difference becomes clear.

Feature-by-Feature Comparison: Aggregator vs YelowXpress

This table shows one thing clearly. When you depend on a food aggregator platform, you are paying for visibility but losing ownership. You have limited access to customer insights, your brand is hidden behind theirs, and you have no say in how deliveries are managed.

On the other hand, a white label ordering app like YelowXpress gives you complete control over your brand, your customers, and your operations. You set the rules. You keep the profits. You grow the relationship.

It also acts as your own online ordering platform, where customers interact with your business directly, without any distractions or competing listings.

The Real Takeaway

When you let a third party manage your orders, your brand takes a back seat. You work hard, but they get the credit and the customer data.

Do not put your key to success in someone else’s pocket.

Instead, build a system that keeps everything where it belongs—with you.

Why This Matters for Australia and New Zealand

Not all markets are the same. What might work in the United States or Europe does not always fit the realities of operating a local business in Australia or New Zealand.

When it comes to delivery, relying on food aggregator platforms is even more damaging in this region. Let us look at why.

High Overheads and Lower Margins

If you run a food business in Australia or New Zealand, you already know the pressure of running costs. Rent is high. Labor is expensive. You deal with strict GST compliance. Your margins are thin before the first order even comes in.

Now add an aggregator charging up to 30 percent commission on every order. Suddenly, you are barely breaking even, no matter how many meals you sell.

That is not a scalable model. And it is not built for long-term survival.

A smarter option is to use a white label ordering app where you do not give away a cut of your revenue every single time someone places an order. Instead, you keep what you earn.

Tech-Savvy Local Customers Prefer Direct Ordering

Here is something that might surprise you.

According to the National Restaurant Association, 84 percent of off-premise customers prefer to order directly from a restaurant’s own website or app instead of using a third-party delivery service. Source – National Restaurant Association

This is great news. It means your customers are not just okay with using your app—they prefer it.

By switching to your own online food delivery Australia platform, you can build real loyalty while giving people the convenience they already expect.

Perfect for Multi-Location and Regional Brands

In big cities like Sydney, competition on aggregator platforms is fierce. Your restaurant is listed next to a hundred others, and visibility often depends on who pays more for promotion.

But in smaller towns across Queensland, regional Victoria, or rural parts of New Zealand, it is a different story. Many areas do not have reliable coverage from apps like Menulog or Uber Eats.

That is where having your own food delivery app for restaurants in Sydney and beyond gives you a huge advantage. You control the experience across every location. You serve your customers directly. And you avoid being limited by third-party coverage.

Whether you run a local café in Wellington or a multi-outlet restaurant in New South Wales, a white label ordering app in New Zealand or Australia puts you ahead of the curve.

Owning your delivery system is not just about better margins. It is about future-proofing your business in a market that is shifting toward branded, direct experiences.

Next, let us look at a real-world example of what happens when a restaurant takes full control.

A Real-World Example: Taking Back Control

Let us bring this all together with a simple story that could easily be yours.

The Story of a Melbourne Café

There is a small café in inner Melbourne. Like many others, they started using food aggregator platforms to manage online orders and delivery.

At first, it seemed like a smart move. Orders came in quickly. But after a few months, the owner began to notice the real impact.

Commissions were eating into their profits. They had no access to customer data.

And even their regular customers were being shown promotions from competing cafés inside the same app.

That is when they decided to shift to a white label ordering app with YelowXpress.

Within days, their branded online ordering platform was live. Customers could now place orders through the café’s own website and mobile app.

The experience was smoother. The margins were better. And more importantly, the café finally had full visibility into who was ordering and what they loved.

They launched a loyalty campaign using SMS. They began offering pre-order pickups to regulars. And they even expanded delivery to nearby offices using their own staff.

What changed?

They stopped building someone else’s platform and started building their own.

When you use a system like YelowXpress, this is not just a possibility. It becomes a clear and repeatable strategy.

Conclusion

If you are still relying on third party platforms to manage your food delivery, ask yourself one question: are you really building your business, or theirs?

Food aggregator platforms may offer reach, but they take more than they give. You lose profit, control, customer data, and brand loyalty in the process.

On the other hand, a white label ordering app like YelowXpress gives you the power to build something that lasts. You create your own online ordering platform, set your own rules, and grow your own loyal customer base.

The choice is simple. Own your brand, your experience, and your future.