Gopuff must invest billions to win European rapid delivery war
US-based rapid delivery startup, Gopuff, needs more firepower if it’s to succeed in Europe, according to Brittain Ladd, a former Amazon exec and supply chain consultant.
Yesterday, the company announced a launch across the UK.
It is now operational in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham and Sheffield. And it aims to be in 33 UK cities by mid 2022.
The arrival in the UK (Gopuff’s first market outside of the US) was driven by the company’s acquisitions of Fancy and Dija earlier this year.
In a LinkedIn post, Ladd said: “In order to be a serious contender in Europe let alone win, it is going to have to invest billions. It has to make additional acquisitions.”
“Among the contenders I’ve recommended it to acquire are Flink; more difficult now that DoorDash has taken an interest in Flink and driven the valuation to $2.1 billion. Flink is a great company but I don’t see its appeal to Gopuff. Yes, Flink gets Gopuff into Germany but then what?”
Ladd reckons that there will be an attempt to acquire Delivery Hero, Getir, or Gorillas if Gopuff struggles to gain traction.
As a wild card, meanwhile, Tesco could buy Gopuff. An even bigger wild card, the latter partners with Ocado Group or the Ocado Group invests in Gopuff.
Gopuff also has to make improvements in its supply chain management and execution.
Ladd argues that it would be wise to copy Gorillas and several other rapid grocery delivery companies, and install supply chain and planning software from Solvoyo.
It should also contact ProfiCircle to reduce costs associated with equipping dark stores.
Ladd concludes: “It’s too early to tell how well Gopuff will do in Europe. However, it’s clear that it didn’t enter the UK and Europe to finish in second place. Gopuff is in it to win it. It’s going to be interesting to watch.”
