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Summary of our market study
In France,meal delivery generates over 10 billion euros in sales. The French "dark kitchen" market is estimated at between 600 and 800 million euros.
The global market for "dark kitchens", also known as ghost kitchens, is booming and estimated at $70 billion
These restaurants don't have a place to receive customers, but a virtual menu and a kitchen in which to prepare the various products on offer, which are then delivered via a platform.
In France, "Dark Kitchens" have seen their presence increase by 50% on the Uber Eats app. The market has experienced an unexpected boom thanks to the Covid-19 crisis. The French market has become an increasingly important fast-food segment.
Demand is largely driven by young urban consumers under 35, who prefer the convenience of home delivery and are increasingly interested in health and environmental issues.
Dark Kitchens" benefit from low rents and streamlined operations, with a limited number of menus, attracting significant investment. In 2021 alone, French companies Taster and Not so Dark have raised €47 million and €20 million respectively.
It is estimated that there are around 1,500 "Dark kitchnen" in the country. 73% are independent restaurants, 15% are attached to chains and 12% are restaurants dedicated entirely to delivery.
The French generally spend less than 30 euros per delivery, with a large number of orders in the 10 to 30 euro range.
60% of available virtual restaurants are located in Paris, with 30% in major cities such as Toulouse, Marseille, Lille and Bordeaux
Authentic, high-quality cuisines such as Japanese, hamburgers and pizzas dominate the market.
Companies are turning to franchise models for growth.
Regulatory challenges are emerging, notably in terms of labor rights for delivery drivers and environmental concerns over disposable packaging.
Players in the "Dark Kitchen" market
- Taster owns several virtual restaurant brands: Stacksando, Mission Saigon
- Not So Dark, brands 6am Fried Chicken, Coquillettes Oui Maman
- Devor, the third giant: brands Saint burger, Holy Chick, Fat poutine, Mama tacos, Tealer Munchies, with CBD.
- Sreet lab Kitchen" created in 2021 with 4 restaurants: Yaya To Go, Gran Burger, Pola Fish Bar, and Little Cocotte.
- Gorillas: The company is present in Germany, the UK, the Netherlands and France.
- Flink: competitor to Gorillas
- Cajoo: French start-up
- Frichti: Founded in France in 2015
- Getir: from Turkey
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Summary and extracts
1 Market overview
1.1 Definition and scope of the study
The market for "ghost kitchens " - more commonly known as "dark kitchens", but also "ghost kitchens" or " virtual kitchens"- is essentially focused on the sale of home-delivered dishes. unlike traditional restaurants, it is impossible to order and eat your meal on site. Orders are placed via online applications such as Uber Eats, Deliveroo and others. The brands of this type of kitchen are essentially virtual in that they own kitchen premises, but these are impossible to access. Dark kitchens offer everything from sushi and burgers to French specialties and foreign cuisines.
The global market for ghost kitchens is a very dynamic segment of the catering market. Some dark kitchens markets are more mature than others, such as the Chinese and Indian markets, where there are 7,500 Chinese dark kitchens and 3,500 Indian dark kitchens worldwide.
The number of dark-kitchen players continues to grow year after year, to the point where some experts believe the market will soon be saturated. In France alone, there are already over 1,500 dark kitchens on the Uber Eats app and over 500 on the Deliveroo app. That's why more and more dark kitchens are turning to the franchise business model. These companies support new players who want to enter the home-delivered food business.
The French market for dark kitchens is still growing. This market dynamic has obviously been boosted by the health crisis, since in 2020 it was almost impossible for us to go out to eat. Market experts say that the health crisis saved the market three years. Fund-raising to support the development of these new ghost kitchens is becoming increasingly recurrent, as in the case of Not So Dark, which raised 80 million euros in 2022 to develop its dark kitchens before changing its business model to franchising and dark kitchens consulting and support.
Nevertheless, 2023 will see the start of new regulations for dark kitchens , putting an end to the market's legal limbo.
1.2 The global market
The global market for dark kitchens is growing by leaps and bounds. Already a common practice in pioneering countries such as China, the use of dark kitchens exploded during the Covid-** crisis. According to Prnewswire, this market will reach a value of $**.* billion worldwide in ****, meaning it will have almost doubled ...
1.3 The domestic market
The dark kitchens market has experienced an unexpected boom thanks to the Covid-** crisis. Indeed, the closure of restaurants due to various periods of confinement has made meal delivery one of only two ways for the French to enjoy dishes normally eaten in their favorite restaurants. As we'll see in the ...
1.4 Interview with François Charpy, founder of Food, Strategy & Performance
Marine: Welcome to the Niche, the podcast that analyzes the niche market with the entrepreneurs who are shaking things up. I'm Marine and I work at Businesscoot, the start-up that's dusting off market research. Before you start, subscribe to our podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcast. And now for today's niche: ...
2 Demand analysis
2.1 Typical profile of home delivery customers
Breakdown of home meal delivery customers by age France, ****, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, % Source: Harris Interactive The main customers for home meal delivery are **-** year olds, with **% of this age group ordering online. The **-** age group follows closely behind, with **% placing meal orders online.
Breakdown of home meal delivery customers by place of ...
2.2 French consumer habits regarding home delivery
Frequency of home-delivered meal purchases France, ****, %, % Source: ****
An analysis of the frequency of home-delivered meal purchases in France in **** reveals that almost half of respondents(***).
Average amounts spent on home meal delivery, by type of income France, ****, in € Source: ****
People on low incomes spend an average of €** per month on this ...
2.3 Rising demand since inflation
Growth in use of home-delivered meals since inflation France, ****, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, % Source: ****
Overall, analysis of the data reveals a trend in which a higher proportion of respondents reported an increase in their use of home-delivered meal servicesthan those who reported a decrease. Indeed, the figures show that **% of respondents mentioned a moderate increase ...
2.4 How the French perceive the working conditions of home delivery drivers
Agreement with various statements about the working conditions of home delivery drivers France, ****, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, % Source: ****
A significant proportion of respondents, **% and **% respectively, totally or somewhat agree with the statement that delivery drivers are poorly paid. Similarly, a high proportion of **% and **% of respondents consider the job to be stressful and difficult. On ...
3 Market structure
3.1 Dark kitchens market organization
The dark kitchens market is organized in a simple way: virtual restaurants (***) take orders via their website or mobile app.
3.2 Home delivery distribution channels
According to the Snacking barometer, **% of French people who have meals delivered do so via platforms. The rest do so either by phone or directly on restaurant websites. This proportion has risen sharply, from just **% in ****. The leaders are Uber Eats, Deliveroo and Just Eat. Uber Eats largely dominates the market, ...
3.3 Lower investments and favorable cost structures
The cost structures of dark kitchens are radically different from those of a classic restaurant. With fewer staff (***), dark kitchens have much lower fixed costs. Let's take a look at Starbucks' cost breakdown for a coffee costing £*.*. We should also bear in mind that Starbucks probably spends much less on staff ...
3.4 Two different models starting to take hold in the provinces
In France today, there are two kinds of dark kitchens, operating on very different models.
The first is the more classic: the restaurant prepares its dishes in a ghost kitchen, shared or not, and uses delivery platforms to access its clientele. Companies managing virtual restaurant brands often operate under a franchise ...
3.5 Fundamental trends that could call into question certain operating mechanisms
The delivery model based on self-employed delivery drivers, with virtually no guarantees and no safety net, is becoming increasingly problematic. According to a survey conducted by Ouest France in Nantes, here are the main problems caused by this delivery format:
Registration is time-consuming and requires investment: delivery drivers must obtain autoentrepreneur ...
4 Offer analysis
4.1 Market leaders and new entrants
Three leaders stand out in the dark kitchens market: Taster, Not so Dark and Devor. With several virtual restaurant brands to choose from, they offer other restaurants the chance to become franchisees and cook their own dishes, supplying them with everything they need. Here are the brands offered by these ...
4.2 A dynamic sector that attracts investment
According to LSA Conso, foodtech is driving up investment in startups, accounting for a total of ***.* million euros in France in the *rd half of **** (***). The sector's high potential is attracting investors, who see a low-cost, highly profitable business model. Furthermore, in **** and ****, several market leaders have also raised substantial ...
4.3 Franchising: a turnkey model to supplement restaurant revenues
Taster, like Not so Dark, is increasingly turning to the franchise model. By selling licenses to classic restaurant players, they completely eliminate the need for real estate and reduce their fixed costs. In an interview with the Néorestauration website, Anton Soulier (***) outlines the apparent advantages of becoming a franchisee:
"The ...
5 Regulations
5.1 Current regulation of delivery platforms
Regulations on platforms
The Loi d'orientation des mobilités (***).
In particular, this law intends to impose the following changes:
"Platforms [***] shall communicate to workers, prior to each service, the distance covered by that service and the guaranteed minimum price they will benefit from, less commission fees". No more accounts suspended ...
5.2 Law urges meal delivery companies to reduce disposable packaging
The future anti-waste law for a circular economy contains a large number of measures aimed directly at plastics. The text begins with two objectives that directly concern plastics. Firstly, France must aim for ***% recycled plastic by ****. Secondly, the law stipulates that "France aims to end the marketing of single-use plastic packaging ...
5.3 Regulations specific to dark kitchens
Compulsory hygiene training
Operators are required to enroll in mandatory hygiene training under article L. ***-* of the French Rural and Maritime Fishing Code. At least one person in the establishment must also undergo special training in food hygiene, Decree no. ****-*** of June **, ****.
Declaration to the DDPP
All operators of ...
6 Positioning the players
6.1 Segmentation
- Uber Eats France
- Deliveroo
- Glovo
- Just Eat
- Frichti (La Belle Vie)
- Foodcheri
- Nestor
- Taster
- Dévor
- Not so Dark
- Clone - Not So Dark
- Flink
List of charts presented in this market study
- Size of the global dark kitchens market
- Size of the home delivery market
- France's preferred delivery location
- Breakdown of home meal delivery customers by age
- Breakdown of home meal delivery customers by place of residence
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Latest news
Flink, the phoenix of moribund quick commerce, raises $115 million - 18/09/2024
- - Flink has raised a further $115 million, announced on September 16, 2024.
- - The company has also contracted $35 million in debt with several banks.
- - This transaction would value Flink at just under one billion dollars.
- - Flink had reached a valuation of $5 billion in May 2022, following the acquisition of its competitor Cajoo.
- - In a previous financing round, which closed in April 2024, Flink raised $106 million.
- - Flink expects to achieve sales of $600 million in 2024, up 20% year-on-year.
- - The company is aiming for overall profitability by the second quarter of 2025.
- - Flink reports an average order size of $40.
- - The company has 146 dark stores in 80 cities in Germany and the Netherlands.
- - Flink has announced the opening of 30 new warehouses by the end of 2025.
Liquidation of the Flink platform in France - 19/04/2024
- Number of Flink employees in France: 218
- - Regulatory context in March 2023: Dark stores considered warehouses rather than shops, regulated by town halls
- - Withdrawal from the French market by Getir: Covering the Getir, Frichti and Gorillas brands
- - Consequences of regulation for Getir and Gorillas: Liquidation, leaving 1300 employees out of a job
- - Frichti taken over: by competitor La Belle Vie
- - Flink sales in France: 37.5 million euros
Just Eat pulls the plug on salaried delivery staff in France - 19/01/2024
- Just Eat Takeaway took three years to stop having salaried delivery staff in France.
- In January 2021, Just Eat had announced its intention to hire 4,500 people to deliver meals, aiming to reach around 30 cities.
- In 2022, Just Eat undertook a reorganization affecting all cities where the salaried delivery system had been set up, with the exception of Paris.
- A job-saving plan is scheduled for September, affecting 117 people.
- Just Eat plans to rely solely on its service providers and restaurant employees to deliver meals in Paris, as it already does elsewhere in France.
Deliveroo enters the catering market - 26/09/2023
- Fauchon Réceptions: around sixty employees and sales of around ten million euros.
- Deliveroo is developing a nationwide network of caterers, with several hundred partners planned over time.
- For the moment, this network covers Paris, Lyon and Bordeaux.
- Deliveroo has around twenty "ghost kitchens" in Paris, spread between Courbevoie and Saint-Ouen.
- 1 billion euros have been invested in three platforms: Deliveroo (523 million euros), Glovo (319 million euros) and Wolt (118 million euros).
Flink France grocery deliverer saved from liquidation. - 12/09/2023
- Yassir, an Algerian start-up, contributed 5 million euros to the investment for the takeover of Flink France.
- Of Flink France's 19 sites in France, 14 will be retained in nine cities (Paris, Lyon, Lille, Marseille, Montpellier, Nice, Bordeaux, Toulouse and Nantes).
- Flink had previously raised almost a billion dollars, while Cajoo raised $47.2 million and Getir, another Turkish quick commerce company, raised $1.8 billion.
- In September 2022, the government declared that "dark stores", used by these companies for storage, were warehouses and not shops, paving the way for regulation by town halls.
Getir and Gorillas liquidated, 1300 jobs lost - 20/07/2023
- Paris Commercial Court announces receivership of express delivery companies Getir and Gorillas in France
- Getir France sales in 2022 were 120.3 million euros
- Regulatory upheaval in March: "dark stores" are now considered warehouses rather than shops.
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The dark kitchen market | France
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