Windsor-Essex restaurant ordering app Jubzi says farewell

Jubzi, a Windsor-based service that allowed customers to order from restaurants through an app, announced Thursday that itis shutting down.

Jubzichief executive officer Thanos Zikantas delivered the announcement through a Facebook video.

"We did our absolute best, but there was no way of saving it," he said.

He also showed appreciation for the community he created Jubzi for, thanking customersfor theirorders.

Zikantas, whoowns Sofos Restaurant, created Jubzi as a way to help local restaurants skip the extra fees other delivery apps tack onto orders.

Jubzi also donated a percentage of every sale to charity, notably the Downtown Mission.

"About one in four people have used Jubzi Windsor-Essex, and this is a brand that is known for being socially responsible and doing something really, really good in our community," Zikantas said.

In an interview,Zikantassaid that Jubziraised more than $200,000 for local charities in the two years the app was running. Users could select where their contributions went out of around 55 groups.

Rising gas prices led to pick-up only service

The app stopped providing delivery in August due tothe rising cost of gas and lack of drivers, instead offering only pick up service. That's whenusers dropped offandthe business "began to unravel."

Zikantas said he wanted to apologizeto restaurants who were featured inthe app but reassure them thatteam tried everything to keep the app going.

"I'm a restaurateur as well and I know how important it is for us to have different options available to us to increase our sales."

Wendy Mejalli-Golevskico-owns Cheecho's Sandwich Shop on Ottawa Street. The owners are friends of Zikantas and have had the shop onJubzisince the app was launched.

"We decided that maybe it was a good idea to have Jubzi as one of our delivery services," she said, adding that she liked that some proceeds of sales through the app went to charity.

Mejalli-Golevski said additional charges by Uber Eats and SkipTheDishes meant she had to raise her prices by 20 to 30 per cent on their apps.

On the Jubzi app, she was able to charge menu prices.

When Jubzi became a pick-up only service, she said only one of her customers continued using the app. She said other customers were "disappointed and confused" that Jubzi stopped offering delivery.

"You could only pick up, but you're still paying for the service and the five per cent, which is the same as coming into my shop and ordering," she said.

Hopes for the future

Mejalli-Golevski said she hopes Jubzi can make a return in the future.

"I would really like to see that particular app come back," she said, adding that the Jubzi delivery drivers were always courteous, professional and on time.

While the app is gone, Zikantas said this might notbe the end of Jubzi forever.

"You can't walk away from a beautiful brand like that," he said, referring to Jubzi's social impact."So, if this comes back, it doesn't necessarily mean that it's going to come back as a delivery application. It can come back in many different forms."