High Commissions Are Killing Local Businesses — And Nobody Cares

The digital economy was supposed to empower small businesses. Instead, it’s slowly bleeding them dry. From food delivery apps to quick-commerce and service marketplaces, local merchants today are paying 25–35% in commissions just to stay visible on platforms that promised them growth. These platforms, once their allies, have become silent predators — dictating prices, throttling visibility, and eating into margins so deeply that many small business owners now work for the apps, not themselves.

The Invisible Tax on Small Businesses

For a local restaurant or salon, the dream was simple: go digital, get discovered, grow faster. But the reality is darker. After paying platform commissions, discounts, and delivery fees, the average merchant’s take-home per order is often less than 60% of the order value. And when they try to raise prices to compensate, the algorithm quietly pushes them down the list — punishing independence and rewarding dependency.

This “invisible tax” on small businesses is reshaping local economies. Instead of creating thriving, decentralized ecosystems, today’s platforms have built walled gardens where only the largest players can afford to survive.

Yori’s Vision: Rebuilding the Balance

At Yori, we see this problem as the defining challenge of the next decade. Technology should liberate local businesses, not enslave them. Our model flips the equation — merchants come first.

We’re building a low-commission, high-freedom platform where businesses pay only for what truly adds value. Our system doesn’t punish merchants for growing independently. In fact, we help them build loyal customer bases, manage repeat orders, and engage directly — all while keeping control of their pricing and brand identity.

Because the real revolution in the digital marketplace won’t come from offering 10-minute delivery or clever push notifications. It’ll come from giving local merchants the power they lost — the ability to make a profit without permission.

Fearless, Not Ruthless

Most startups today fear challenging the status quo. At Yori, we don’t.

We’re not trying to become another delivery app. We’re building the foundation for a fair digital economy — one where small businesses thrive, customers benefit from lower prices, and the ecosystem becomes sustainable again.

It’s time someone stood up and said what everyone’s thinking: High commissions are killing local businesses. And we’re here to stop it.