TOKYO — Tablecross, a Tokyo-based online restaurant reservation business that began by primarily servicing international guests, is expanding its services to include Japanese customers as the COVID-19 outbreak keeps the country’s borders closed to international tourism. Tablecross’ byFood.com platform, which caters mostly to international travelers in several Japanese cities, allows users to reserve restaurants. Food experiences, such as Japanese cooking classes, are also available. The company provides a portion of its proceeds from each booking made through the platform to feed children in impoverished nations. Monex Ventures, an online brokerage, and angel investors are among its strategic backers. According to the corporation, the platform, which was launched in 2019, now has 45,000 monthly visitors. According to Serkan Toso, chief operating officer of Tablecross, “the travel and food service industries are among the most affected sectors” as a result of the dramatic decline in worldwide demand caused by entrance restrictions during the COVID-19 epidemic. “In the next stage, we’ll concentrate on expanding our offerings to Japanese customers.” According to Toso, 40 percent of the company’s consumers are from the United States, with the majority of other web visitors hailing from Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. The Turkish entrepreneur wants to provide international travelers with unique Japanese dining experiences, but relying on international passengers has become tough. ByFood.com partnered with Toyota Motor’s Kinto, which provides a car subscription service, earlier this year to promote the platform to young drivers on road trips looking for dining options. Shorter trips are becoming more popular as a result of the pandemic, according to byFood.com. Toso said the company also wants to provide Japanese clients with gastronomic experiences, like as sukiyaki cooking workshops at country inns that were previously only open to foreign tourists. ByFood.com hopes to create an e-commerce business in the long run, allowing tour participants to buy food from artisans and farmers after they return home. Despite the fact that byFood.com is expanding its service to the Japanese, it intends to continue promoting its services to tourists from other countries. It has recently launched video tutorials for Japanese cuisine, allowing people to try new foods in the comfort of their own homes. byFood.com offers approximately 25 different classes, including wagashi (Japanese sweets). The firm has become profitable for the first time thanks to the new online lessons and cost-cutting methods. Sales increased by 25% year over year in the fiscal year that concluded in May. In fiscal 2022, Tablecross aims to earn 100 million yen ($908,983) in revenue. Continue reading
