MakeMyTrip partners with hotels to launch online gourmet delivery service

Leading online travel firm MakeMyTrip on Thursday said it has partnered with premium hotel chains and independent properties in select cities across India to roll out online gourmet delivery service.

With dine-in experiences coming to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic-triggered lockdown, the company aims to bring culinary experiences from top restaurants to the doorstep of customers in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Bengaluru, MakeMyTrip said in a statement.

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With a commitment of adhering to food safety and hygiene standards, MakeMyTrip will be delivering orders through third-party service providers in respective cities, it added.

"Our new online gourmet delivery initiative is a step towards ensuring that food-lovers continue to enjoy their in-city fine-dining experiences by bringing their eating-out adventures to their homes," MakeMyTrip Emerging Businesses Chief Business Officer Deepak Tuli said.

Earlier in March, the online travel firm has launched 'Stays for Saviours' initiative to provide temporary accommodations at special rates for the medical frontline force fighting COVID-19.

"This initiative has been rolled out in partnership with hotel chains and independent hotels that are pitching in to support our healthcare heroes across 26 states and four Union Territories", MakeMyTrip said in a statement.

It will enable medical practitioners to discover and book from over 900 hotel properties across 200 cities in India on the MakeMyTrip app, it added.

On the initiative, MakeMyTrip Executive Chairman Deep Kalra said,

"We are grateful for the courage shown by healthcare workers and we want to assist them by providing comfortable and subsidised accommodation options to these heroic first responders".

Executive Chairman Deep Kalra and CEO Rajesh Magow have also decided to take 'zero salary' from April 2020 as the company plans to undertake multiple "tough measures" to keep overall expenses at a minimum amid the COVID-19 outbreak.

(Disclaimer: Additional background information has been added to this PTI copy for context)