Rebel without an app

The ghost of ‘Eat Out to Help Out’ may be long buried, but our industry has taken matters into its own hands with a mini-revolution…‘Help Out Hospitality’ (HOH) is on the UK menu board for 2026.

Original Collection Hotels, Mosaic Pub Group and 100 or so other top-tier venues have slid past the discount sites to launch a commission-free platform. They are now negotiating trade discounts directly with suppliers and offering deals that actually protect margins instead of picking away at them.

I’m loving seeing this coordinated uprising against the 30% commission “tax” that’s been eating my lunch for years. For those of us who’ve been handing over a third of our revenue to a delivery app to get food to our own neighbours, you don’t feel like a business owner but a high-interest tenant.

Anyone in hospitality knows that February is make-or-break for cash flow. So why don’t you use the HOH momentum to bribe your customers back to your own site?

I’d rather give a regular 15% off for booking direct than give 30% to a platform that treats my brand like a commodity. Take back your data, take back your margin, and stop paying for the privilege of being discovered by people who already know where you are.

Here’s what I’m suggesting to F&B freedom fighters this month:

• The ‘Join the Club’ Hook: Don’t just offer a discount – offer a HOH Direct Rate. You can frame it as an exclusive community price that is only available on your website.
• Supplier-Led Specials: Follow the HOH model by asking your meat or veg suppliers for “Q1 Bulk Deals” on specific lines, then build a “Direct-Only” menu around those high-margin items.
• The In-Bag Guerilla Tactic: If you are still using apps for delivery, every bag must include a physical Direct Booking voucher for 20% off their next order. Capture the email address on that second order to move them out of the app’s ecosystem forever.
• Check Your Tech: 2026 is the year of AI-driven personalisation, so make sure you use your CRM to trigger “We miss you” offers specifically to customers who haven’t booked since the Christmas rush.

With the 3.75% interest rate hold and the April 1st business rates cliff-edge fast approaching, every percentage point of margin you claw back from delivery apps right now is “survival capital” for the spring. Vive la révolution!

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