Digital Garage and Kakaku.com Decide to Jointly Develop a Fintech Services for the Food Service Industry

-　DG and DG group company Kakaku.com decide to jointly develop and deploy Fintech services for the food service industry.

-　As a start, the two companies will offer an invoice card payment service for restaurants.

The food service industry, which is estimated to have a market size of roughly 17 trillion yen^*1, is becoming more DX-oriented, with the penetration of mobile ordering and contactless payment (code payment) and the expansion of food delivery users. The food service industry is expected to continue to gain momentum in the future.

Amidst significant changes in the Japanese social and industrial structures, Digital Garage, Inc. (TSE Prime section: 4819; HQ: Tokyo; Representative Director, President Executive Officer and Group CEO: Kaoru Hayashi; DG) is doing business in Fintech fields based on the “DG FinTech Shift,” a group strategy that integrates payment and data to promote DX in Japan.

Then, in addition to the restaurant search and reservation site “Tabelog,” Kakaku.com, Inc. (TSE Prime section: 2731; HQ: Tokyo; Representative Director, President and Executive Officer: Shonosuke Hata; Kakaku.com) offers various services to promote DX in restaurants, such as accepting online reservations, managing seats using an online reservation ledger, taking orders through in-store mobile ordering, and streamlining purchasing operations with an application.

Under these circumstances, DG and Kakaku.com decided to continue joint development of Fintech solutions by leveraging DG’s payment business and Kakaku.com’s DX services for restaurants with the aim of building a suite of services that will contribute to the development of the food service industry. To begin with, DG will offer its “DGFT Invoice Card Payment” as part of its DX for restaurants, offering a solution to the cash-flow problems that restaurants face due to soaring raw material prices.

■About “DGFT Invoice Payment”https://lp.dginvoice.jp/
This service postpones the payment due date by up to 60 days^*2 when paying by bank transfer invoice is switched to payment by JCB/Visa/Mastercard® cards (excluding prepaid cards issued under the JCB brand) ^*3. This is available even if your business partner does not support card payments, and it supports the cash management of small and medium-sized businesses, including regular and unexpected funding shortages due to a variety of factors.

As DX becomes more widespread and restaurant management becomes more efficient, the convenience of users of “Tabelog” will also increase. For example, the number of restaurants and seats that can be reserved online will increase as reservations are accepted and managed more efficiently. In addition, mobile ordering will enable customers to order and pay easily and without waiting, resulting in a more satisfying dining-out experience. Starting with the offering of “DGFT Invoice Card Payment,” DG and Kakaku.com will continue to contribute to developing the food service industry in Japan by providing solutions to restaurant management issues from every possible angle.

*1: Based on the combined values data for “restaurants” and “cafes, izakaya, and others” in Japan Foodservice Association’s Food Service Industry Market Trends Survey for 2019.
*2: This service is only available for credit card payments. The actual number of days for postponement will depend on the date and time you apply for credit card payment and the debit date of the card you use.
*3: Related press release “Digital Garage and JCB Launches B2B Payment Service” (November 10, 2022)
Related press release “Digital Garage’s B2B Payment Service Begins Accepting Visa and Mastercard®, Following JCB” (December 12, 2022)

【About DG】https://www.garage.co.jp/en/
Digital Garage’s corporate purpose is “Designing “New Context” for a sustainable society with technology.” Digital Garage operates a payment business that provides one of the largest comprehensive payment platforms in Japan, a marketing business that leverages data to deliver solutions that integrate real and cyberspace, and an investment and development business that discovers and supports promising startups from around the world.

【About Kakaku.com】https://corporate.kakaku.com/?lang=en
Based on its mission “LIFE with – To Become a part of people’s daily lives –” Kakaku.com, Inc. operates a wide range of user-oriented internet services, such as the shopping support site Kakaku.com, the restaurant discovery and reservation site Tabelog or the comprehensive search site for job classifieds Kyujin Box, all of which seek to enrich people’s daily lives.

【About “Tabelog”】https://tabelog.com/
A restaurant discovery and reservation site operated by Kakaku.com, Inc., launched in March 2005, where you can enjoy searching for restaurants that match your needs and preferences, based on recommendations from people whose tastes match yours, various search criteria, and original articles. You can also make online reservations 24 hours a day, 7 days a week via your smartphone and other mobile devices.