Case Study: Sonic Drive‑In achieves scalable mobile ordering and increased sales with VMware Tanzu

Why a well-built app is driving sales and brand loyalty at Sonic Drive-In

Sonic Drive‑In, the 3,600‑store quick‑service chain with about 8.5 million active mobile users and 85,000 drive‑up stalls, needed a premium mobile experience to stay competitive. Moving off a one‑size‑fits‑all white‑label app, Sonic faced the challenge of building scalable, custom software that could connect to diverse in‑store POS systems, handle franchisee‑specific pricing, and deliver a seamless Order‑Ahead experience across thousands of drive‑in stalls.

Sonic partnered with Pivotal/VMware Tanzu and adopted a platform‑first approach using Cloud Foundry to integrate store‑level systems and surface real‑time pricing and orders. The resulting Order‑Ahead app hides complex back‑end orchestration with a clean UX, is highly rated, supports marketing investments at scale, and enables multiple business outcomes—driving improved sales performance and stronger brand loyalty.

Sonic Drive-In

Allen Plummer

IT Director of Platform Engineering