Takeaway food. Image: Emmy Smith/Unsplash
Although Deliveroo pulled out of Germany, it has entered new markets including Kuwait and Taiwan, as well as 250 new cities.
Food delivery company Deliveroo saw its revenues surge by 72pc in 2018, with global sales reaching £476m.
However, the company is still a long way from profitability, according to the Financial Times, which reports that the company experienced considerable losses over the year ending 31 December 2018.
During that period, operating expenses rose to £349.4m, up from £106m the previous year. In total, Deliveroo’s pre-tax losses increased to £232m, up from £199m 2017.
The news comes less than two months after the company completely withdrew from the German market, giving its couriers, which the company refers to as ‘riders’, four days’ notice that their employment would be terminated.
Although the company pulled out of Germany, it continued to expand into new markets in 2018, including Taiwan and Kuwait, as well as 250 new cities. Deliveroo also introduced a platform called Marketplace+, which offers restaurants the option to deliver their own food but using the Deliveroo platform.
Deliveroo CEO Will Shu said that the company plans to “invest in expansion, technology and new products”, and expressed an optimistic outlook for the company’s future.
Competition
Deliveroo disclosed its financial results after a competitive summer between some of Europe’s biggest food delivery services. Just Eat, which is one of Deliveroo’s main competitors in Ireland and the UK, announced plans to merge with continental European giant, Takeaway.com.
However, there may be some delays in finalising the deal. At the beginning of September, one of Just Eat’s top-10 investors, Eminence Capital, said that it would vote against the merger, as it does not support the deal under the agreed terms.
The investor said that Takeaway’s £9bn deal offer was “highly opportunistic” and represented a “gross undervaluation” of the UK takeaway marketplace.
Meanwhile, Deliveroo is also experiencing delays in a significant deal of its own, as the company is still waiting for UK regulators to approve a $575m investment from Amazon, which was stalled due to concerns about competition.
Takeaway food. Image: Emmy Smith/Unsplash
