NRAI Kolkata Session On Restaurant Growth Beyond Aggregators
NRAI Kolkata Session brought together 150+ restaurateurs to discuss CRM strategies, customer retention and reducing aggregator dependency.
nishathapa 
Kolkata, May 2026: India’s restaurant owners are starting to say the quiet part out loud: aggregator apps bring orders, but they also eat your margins and take your customer data with them. That tension sat at the centre of a closed-door industry session led by the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) in partnership with Reelo.
More than 150 operators showed up. And the message was blunt—stop renting your customers.
Industry dialogue centres on reducing aggregator dependence
Operators didn’t sugarcoat it. Heavy reliance on third-party delivery platforms is squeezing margins and weakening control over customer relationships. And that’s the real problem. Aggregators still matter for discovery. They drive traffic. But restaurants are waking up to the cost, discount wars, thin profits, and zero ownership of the guest. The conversation has shifted. It’s no longer “should we use aggregators?” It’s “how do we survive without depending on them?”
Focus on CRM, loyalty programmes and customer data
The room kept circling back to one thing: data. Restaurants that know their customers win. Simple. Operators discussed using CRM tools and loyalty programmes to track behaviour, what guests order, how often they return, and what keeps them engaged. That data isn’t just numbers. It shapes offers, menus, and how guests feel about the brand.
And it cuts down discount dependency.
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Build your own customer database
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Communicate directly, not through apps
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Reward repeat behaviour, not one-time discounts
Personalisation came up again and again. Not as a buzzword, but as survival strategy.
Fireside chat highlights long-term engagement strategies
In a fireside chat, Anurag Singh, Founder and CEO of Reelo, joined Parin Sanghvi to break it down. Singh didn’t blame aggregators. He blamed dependence on them. That distinction matters. He pushed operators to invest in experience, not discounts. Build something guests remember. Then give them a reason to come back without a coupon. Because loyalty built on discounts isn’t loyalty—it’s habit. And habits break fast.
Shift towards sustainable and relationship-driven growth
There’s a visible shift happening. Restaurants are moving away from quick wins toward long-term plays. Better service. Stronger brand identity. Direct engagement. But it’s not easy. It requires tech investment, staff training, and patience. Still, operators at the session were clear: the old model isn’t holding up. And the new one? It’s slower. But it gives control back.
NRAI continues industry-focused learning initiatives
For the National Restaurant Association of India, this wasn’t a one-off event. It’s part of a wider push to get the industry thinking beyond daily sales numbers. Because the pressure is real, rising costs, intense competition, and customers who switch brands fast. Sessions like this are about staying ahead of that curve. And one idea stood out across the room: Own your customer, or someone else will.
