Queens Together to host roundtable on supporting local businesses

Queens Together is hosting a roundtable next week to discuss the impact of delivery apps like UberEats on local restaurants. Photo via shopblocks/Flickr

By Rachel Vick

Queens Together is housing a virtual roundtable next Tuesday to discuss the impact of third party delivery apps on local businesses.

Executive Director Jonathan Forgash arranged for Daniel McCarthy, an assistant professor of marketing at Emory University, to speak after hearing his testimony on transfer of wealth from restaurants to delivery services at a recent City Council hearing.

“The food ordering platforms are convenient, and that's great, but the fees they tack on and charge not just the restaurants but customers themselves — that's all from our community wealth to out of state corporations,” Forgash told the Eagle.

According to McCarthy, delivery sales grew by about $28 billion in 2020 largely due to the pandemic.

Forgash pointed to mutual aid efforts during the pandemic as proof that Queens’ communities can keep business local to support each other.

“The next time they spend money whether Amazon or GrubHub, [people should] think about where that money is going and how little effort that would take to spend on a restaurant or local shops,” he said. “I hope the conversation grows and that's what this is about, starting a conversation, [because] we don’t have all the answers yet.”
Registration for the 10:30 a.m. Zoom is available online. Attendance is free and open to the public.