FAQ
Straight answers
How HatDrop works, including the parts that might not suit you.
01
Getting started
How long until I'm taking orders?
About a week. Most of the work is on our side. The parts that take your time are loading your catalogue and getting your payment setup ready.
What do I have to provide?
Your logo, your product list with prices, your store address, how far you deliver and what you charge for it, and your drivers. That's it.
Do I need a developer?
No. HatDrop is built so your team can run the day to day without building or maintaining software. There's nothing to install.
Can I try it before committing?
Yes. We'll show you the platform with your own products loaded on a demo call. Ordering stays switched off until you turn it on.
02
What's included
What comes with the monthly fee?
Online ordering, delivery and dispatch, the driver app, customer tracking, products and stock, marketing and rewards, age checks and reporting — plus support.
What can I change myself?
Everything about your business: name, logo, colours, hours, store address, delivery areas and prices, tax rate, minimum age, driver pay and tip split, products, staff, and whether you're taking orders.
Is support really included?
Yes. Support comes with your plan rather than being sold separately. When something needs changing, you message us.
Do you charge per order?
No. There's no commission on your deliveries.
03
Payments
Where does the money go?
Card payments go to your own account, in your business's name.
Can I take cash on delivery?
Yes, from day one, and separately from card payments.
Can I use different payment setups in-store and online?
Yes. A countertop terminal and your website can be set up differently — that's a normal arrangement.
What if my payment setup changes?
Payment options can be switched without rebuilding your store, and your shop keeps running on cash while it's sorted.
04
Delivery and drivers
How does delivery pricing work?
You set delivery areas by distance. Each one has its own ASAP price and its own scheduled price. Past your furthest area, checkout turns the order away rather than accepting something you can't fulfil.
Do drivers need to install an app?
No. It opens in a phone browser — directions, live location, a scan to confirm the right order, proof of delivery and shift totals.
Can customers see where their driver is?
Yes, on a live map, on a page branded as your store.
Can I schedule deliveries for later?
Yes, with its own pricing separate from ASAP.
05
Your brand and your data
Will customers know they're using HatDrop?
No, unless you want them to. Your logo, colours, domain and name throughout. There's an optional 'Powered by HatDrop' credit that's off by default.
Can I use my own domain?
Yes. You start on a HatDrop address and connect your own domain whenever you're ready.
Who owns my customer list?
You do. It lives in your store's own workspace, separate from every other business using HatDrop, and you can export it.
What if I stop using the platform?
We export your products, customers and order history in a usable format.
06
Age checks and records
Does the platform keep me compliant?
No — and be wary of anything that claims to. It gives you age verification, delivery-area limits, purchase records and a record of staff activity. What your licence requires is between you and your own advisers; you set the controls to match.
How does age verification work?
It's built into ordering. You choose whether it applies at sign-in, at checkout or both, and you set the minimum age. If a check can't be completed, the order doesn't go through.
Is there a record of what happened?
Yes. Every staff action and every order status change is recorded with who did it and when.
Do you connect to state track-and-trace systems?
Not currently. If that's a requirement for your licence, raise it on the call — better to know now than after you've signed.
Still have a question?
Ask us directly — we'd rather answer it before you sign than after.