Alan HainingOne of our clients operates several restaurant brands across multiple locations in the Nordic market. They were relying on an online ordering system built and managed by a third-party vendor. It seemed like an easy solution at first, but over time it held the business back. This is how Agilo helped them take full control with a custom Medusa commerce platform.
The challenges facing their online ordering system
Their third-party online ordering system came with a big catch. Every small change, like updating a menu, adjusting delivery zones, or tweaking the customer experience, had to go through the vendor first. It was slow, expensive, and left the team with almost no control over their own product.
They also had no real loyalty tools built into the app. There were no vouchers, no referral programs, and no member cards. Customers had no strong reason to keep coming back, and the business had no way to reward them for doing so.
Analytics were limited too. The team had no clear picture of what customers were ordering, when they were ordering, or how different locations were performing.
As the group opened more locations, the problems grew. Delivery zones were incorrectly configured, which led to locations accepting more orders than they could handle. Menu items were set up differently across brands, which caused errors in the kitchen.
These were not minor inconveniences. They were quietly damaging the business. Customers drifted to competitors offering better apps and personalised rewards. Expansion plans stalled. In a competitive Nordic hospitality market where diners expect smooth, app-first experiences, an outdated ordering system is a serious liability.
Why Agilo chose Medusa as the commerce platform
When evaluating solutions for multi-location restaurant app development, we needed a platform that offered full flexibility, ownership, and the ability to scale. Medusa is an open-source commerce platform built for exactly this kind of complex, custom use case.
Unlike rigid white-label solutions, Medusa gives development teams complete control over the backend. That means custom menus per brand, location-specific delivery zones, dynamic product bundles, and loyalty features, all built to the client’s exact requirements. For a Nordic hospitality group managing multiple brands and dozens of locations, this level of control is not a nice-to-have. It is essential.
How we built the restaurant app
We started by learning how the business operated day to day. We spoke with their team, identified the biggest pain points, and agreed on a clear plan before writing a single line of code.
Here is what we built:
Custom iOS and Android app
Using React Native and Expo, we built a unified app for both platforms. Customers can track orders in real time, save addresses and payment details for fast reordering, and switch between brands easily. The app also includes a full loyalty suite with vouchers, referral programs, and member cards.
Medusa commerce backend
The Medusa backend handled all the complexity behind the scenes. This included multi-brand menu management, customisable orders with modifiers and bundles, geofenced delivery zones per location, and capacity controls to prevent locations from being overwhelmed during busy periods.
Third-party integrations
We connected the app to Wolt for live delivery tracking, added Apple Pay, Google Pay, and card payments via secure payment gateways, set up automated printing for kitchen and front-of-house staff, and integrated analytics tools so the team could track customer behaviour and run targeted email and SMS campaigns.
Smooth data migration
All existing customer data, order history, preferences, and product catalogues were moved to the new system without any service interruption.
Throughout the project we held fortnightly check-ins, kept a shared Slack channel open for fast feedback, and used Jira to track progress. The client’s product owner stayed closely involved and set priorities at every stage.
The results
The client now has complete ownership of their online ordering system. New features and promotions can be launched without waiting for a vendor. Loyalty tools drove a measurable increase in repeat visits. Order accuracy improved across all locations because menus and modifiers were configured correctly from the start.
The analytics dashboard gives the team real visibility into customer behaviour for the first time. This helped make smarter decisions about stock levels, pricing, and marketing spend.
The Medusa-based architecture is also built to scale. Adding a new brand or location does not mean rebuilding from scratch, which is a major advantage for a growing hospitality group.
We manage new feature releases, monitor performance, fix issues proactively, and advise on the product roadmap.
Is your restaurant group ready to take control?
If your hospitality business is dealing with a limited third-party app, weak loyalty tools, or growing pains across multiple locations, a custom Medusa-powered online ordering system could be the answer.
Agilo works with Nordic restaurant groups and multi-location F&B operators to build e-commerce solutions that fit how your business actually works, not how a white-label vendor thinks it should.
Get in contact with Agilo for a free strategic assessment. We will review your current setup, identify the gaps, and put together a clear plan for what to build next.ether a clear plan for what to do next.
