Seattle's new gig worker ordinance, aimed at bolstering pay for delivery drivers, has hit local eateries where it hurts: the cash register. Jeffrey Stern, owner of Il Villaggio, a cozy Italian spot in Magnolia, detailed a bleak picture "just in the third-party delivery apps? Fifty percent down,” Stern lamented, according to an interview with KING 5. A $5 fee imposed by food delivery apps in response to the ordinance seems the likely culprit for this downturn.
On a typical Sunday evening, which once simmered with the hustle of up to 20 orders, the pizzeria now sees a mere trickle — just three orders as of 5 p.m. yesterday, the general manager James Lambard revealed, the impact was immediate since the city's regulation took hold in January, as further expounded by U.S. Times Post.
Staff wages and tips have taken a nosedive with the slowdown, exacerbating concerns among the pizzeria's employees "We're losing tips, we're losing, you know, wages, because there's less hours to cover because it's not as busy as it was," Lambard pointed out. Stern and his team, desperate for a turnaround, are mulling over strategies; one suggestion from marketing advisers included a website popup to entice customers to bypass delivery apps and order directly, potentially saving them 30%, per KING 5.
Stern recognizes that changing customer habits is an uphill battle "I do appreciate and value the partnership with our third-party delivery apps, Uber, Doordash, Grubhub, and others," he told KING 5, yet he understands that consumer education is part of the puzzle in adapting to the challenges presented by the new fee structure. Meanwhile, delivery apps defend the new fee as necessary to comply with the city's ordinance, passing on operational costs to consumers.
Despite the steep drop in orders and the search for a viable path forward, the heat in Il Villaggio's kitchen hasn't cooled—Lambard assured that their menu is still full of Italian favorites ready in "just like that, eight minutes 'til perfection." The pizzeria's plight underscores a broader tension between regulatory efforts to support gig workers and the realities faced by small businesses trying to stay afloat in an ever-shifting service landscape. Stern remains committed, asserting that "Eating is community, right? And we want Seattle to have a better community", as per KING 5.
