By: Katie Daire, Senior Director, B2B Marketing
Restaurants are at the core of our local communities and cultures. They’re where we congregate, where we celebrate, and where so many entrepreneurs fulfill their dreams of owning a business. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced thousands of restaurants to close — some temporarily, some permanently. Hit especially hard are Black-owned businesses, who are twice as likely to have closed during the pandemic than other businesses. With each closure a community loses a piece of their identity.
At DoorDash, we are committed to helping restaurants — and the people behind them — through this crisis. That’s why we’ve partnered with Krazy Hog BBQ, a beloved Chicago-area restaurant that was forced to close their doors during the pandemic, to help them reopen for delivery.
The rebirth of a restaurant. The legacy of Black entrepreneurship.
Krazy Hog BBQ, owned by Victor and Dana Cooksey, quickly became the heartbeat of their community. In March of 2020, faced with a statewide executive order to shut down dine-in operations, supply chain shortages, and safety concerns for their staff, the Cookseys made the hard decision to close Krazy Hog BBQ. Since the moment they closed, the Cookseys haven’t stopped fighting for their restaurant and legacy, and today, they officially reopen for delivery for the first time in eight months.
The resilience of Krazy Hog owners Victor and Dana Cooksey and their family, the legacy of Black entrepreneurship, and the unwavering commitment of the Chicago community to support their neighborhood is documented in Southside Magnolia, a film by Rodney Lucas, and presented by DoorDash.
Beyond telling stories of entrepreneurs facing the pandemic’s challenges head-on, DoorDash is committed to creating a platform that reflects the communities we serve and reducing barriers to entry on our platform. That’s why we launched initiatives like matching loans for Black-owned businesses through a new partnership with Kiva, and offering $0 delivery fees for Black-owned businesses on our platform through the end of 2020.
Announcing Reopen for Delivery, and extending our Main Street Strong promise
In May, we announced Main Street Strong, an ongoing commitment to help restaurants navigate through the effects of COVID-19, providing them with a variety of products and services so they can decide the best way to accelerate their businesses into the new normal.
Now, starting with Krazy Hog BBQ in Chicago, we’re kicking off our newest Main Street Strong initiative: Reopen for Delivery. DoorDash will help select restaurants to reopen by operating delivery-only kitchens in order to grow their business and reach new customers, without traditional overhead costs.
DoorDash has worked closely with the Cooksey family over the last few months, alongside virtual kitchen operator Á La Couch, to help bring the Krazy Hog vision to life in a new delivery-only model. Eventually, both the delivery-only kitchen and a new brick and mortar Krazy Hog BBQ location will operate in the Chicago area.
With Reopen for Delivery, DoorDash is planning to:
- Help restaurants to rebuild operations through opening delivery-only spaces designed for off-premise or licensing their brands to kitchen fulfillment companies;
- Provide last-mile logistics support to help merchants accelerate into this new delivery-only model;
- Invest in operations and marketing support to ensure the companies can navigate the re-opening process while maintaining and growing their brands.
This is the start of our Reopen for Delivery initiative, and our hope is to help several restaurants across the country to reopen their doors. To submit a restaurant you love that’s closed because of COVID-19 related challenges or to learn more about Krazy Hog BBQ, visit https://www.southsidemagnolia.com/. If you’re in Chicago, you can order from Krazy Hog, exclusively on DoorDash, here.
Helping Restaurants to Reopen for Delivery was originally published in DoorDash on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.