Curbside Pickup launches ordering platform for small businesses

Curbside Pickup has launched an order-ahead and pickup platform for restaurants, pharmacies and retailers, with automatic arrival detection and a free starter tier. The company is betting small operators will use the system to cut lines, capture walkaways and manage pickup without extra hardware or contracts.

Why it matters: - Small counter-service businesses lose sales when customers see a line and leave before ordering. - Curbside Pickup is pitching a way to turn that lost foot traffic into paid orders without adding hardware, phone calls or extra staffing burden. - The platform also gives independent operators data on order volume, peak periods and repeat customer behavior that many do not currently have.

What happened: - Curbside Pickup launched an ordering and pickup platform for restaurants, cafés, pharmacies, retailers and other counter-service businesses. - Customers can order and pay ahead through the app or any mobile browser. - The platform uses geofencing to detect customer arrival automatically and alert staff. - The first 10 orders each month are free, with no credit card required.

The details: - The platform supports four service modes: curbside pickup, in-store pickup, table ordering and counter pickup. - Curbside pickup brings orders to a customer’s vehicle. - In-store pickup, also called click and collect or BOPIS, lets customers pick up an order that is already bagged and paid for. - Table ordering lets diners scan a QR code and order from their phones. - Counter pickup replaces buzzers and pagers that can be lost or misused. - The company says battery-efficient background geofencing triggers the notification when a customer enters the pickup zone. - The system is designed to work on an existing phone, tablet or computer. - Businesses can create an account, upload a menu or product list, connect a payment method and start taking orders in under an hour. - Billing after the free tier is month-to-month, with no lock-in. - Customers can pay by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay, on arrival, at the counter or on a tab. - Curbside Pickup Business and the consumer app are available on iOS, Android and any mobile browser. - Curbside Pickup Business provides reporting on order volume, peak periods and repeat customer behavior.

Between the lines: - The launch targets a long-standing operational problem that many small operators treat as unavoidable: customers who leave during busy periods without ever appearing in sales data. - The free first 10 orders and no-hardware setup lower the barrier for independent businesses that have avoided similar systems because of cost and complexity. - The company is broadening the use case beyond hospitality to categories with the same queue problem, including pharmacies, florists, butchers, fishmongers, grocers, juice bars, ice-cream shops, liquor stores, pet supply shops, auto parts retailers, fresh produce markets, mobile food trucks and public libraries. - Founder and CEO Rami Smair argues that rush-hour congestion is a queue-management issue, not a fixed fact of nature.

What's next: - Small businesses can test the platform immediately on existing devices without a long contract. - Operators can start with the free monthly order allotment and move to paid usage only if the system proves useful. - Curbside Pickup is positioning the platform as a way to turn walkaways into measurable demand and to help businesses optimize staffing and service flow.

The bottom line: - Curbside Pickup is trying to make order-ahead pickup simple enough for independent businesses to adopt fast, with automatic arrival detection and a low-friction pricing model.