Food orders online finds a demographic

NEW YORK, Sept. 7 (UPI) -- Nearly one fifth of U.S. consumers age 24-34 have ordered food online, a food marketing expert said.

St. Joseph University professor of food marketing Richard George said 17 percent of younger consumers had used the Internet to order food, while only 4 percent of baby boomers had done so, the Detroit Free Press reported Tuesday.

The numbers point to a possibility that ordering food online will become more commonplace. It also helps explain why pizza chain Dominoes ranks fourth among online businesses, the newspaper said.

The number 1 retailer on the Internet is Amazon.com, followed by Staples and Office Depot. Fourth on the list is Dominoes.

Profits at Dominoes rose 23 percent over a year ago in the first six months of the year, compared to January through June of 2009.

Franchise owner Dave Cesarini said, "I really can't see any downside unless the Internet goes down. It makes our stores run better, because it takes less people to run a store."

Customers like the computer system that names the staff member making the pizza and the delivery driver. It also makes it easier to assess the price of an order before hitting the final confirmation link.

"It's convenient for me to start an order and adjust it if it ends up being a little too expensive for me," said Westland, Mich. Customer Michele LaTour.