Case study · In-house delivery
In-house delivery management: how Portillo’s took catering delivery in-house to protect quality with Cartwheel
Rather than hand catering off to third parties, Portillo’s runs its own drivers on Cartwheel, keeping quality control, brand experience, and delivery revenue in-house.
About Portillo’s
Portillo’s is an iconic Chicago-style fast-casual brand known for its hot dogs, Italian beef sandwiches, and a fiercely loyal following. As catering demand grew, so did the stakes on getting every delivery exactly right.
The challenge
Third-party delivery put quality out of reach.
Handing catering orders to third-party couriers meant handing over control. Portillo’s could not guarantee how food was handled, how it arrived, or how the guest was treated at the door, and every misstep reflected back on the brand rather than the courier.
It also meant giving up a share of delivery revenue and the direct customer relationship that comes with owning the last mile.
The solution
Delivery brought in-house on Cartwheel.
With Cartwheel, Portillo’s dispatches, tracks, and manages its own drivers from one platform, so catering delivery stays inside the brand. Three capabilities made in-house delivery practical at scale.
In-house driver management
Dispatch, route, and manage Portillo’s own drivers from one platform, no third party in the middle.
End-to-end quality control
Owning the last mile keeps food handling and the guest experience on-brand from kitchen to door.
Real-time visibility
Live tracking and accurate ETAs across every catering order, for the team and the customer.
Keeping delivery in-house did more than protect quality. It kept revenue and the customer relationship with Portillo’s, turning the last mile from a liability into an extension of the brand.
Quality, revenue, and the guest relationship, all kept in-house.
Key results
What Portillo’s gained by owning catering delivery on Cartwheel.
The outcome
Delivery that stays on-brand.
Portillo’s now runs catering delivery the way it runs everything else: on its own terms. Quality is protected, revenue stays in-house, and guests get the same experience at the door that they would in the restaurant.
With Cartwheel handling the operational load, owning the last mile is no longer a trade-off between control and convenience.