Foodpanda, the startup from the Samwer brothers’ Rocket Internet incubator has announced the acquisition of three national operations across Central Europe In Hungary, the german group has acquired food delivery portal NetPincer, which has been operating since 1999 and works with over 550 restaurants across the country. The acquisition of NetPincer makes foodpanda the market leader in Hungary.
Foodpanda also acquired Donesi.com operations in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia & Herzegovina, merging the services offered by over 550 restaurants under the same brand. In neighbouring Croatia, foodpanda has acquired the online food delivery company Pauza.hr offering food delivery and take away from hundreds of restaurants. Similar to Donesi, Pauza will continue to operate under its own brand. The acquisitions make the German-born company the leader in respective markets.
The significance of the acquisitions is two-fold: first for how it underscores the rapid acquisition march of takeout delivery companies as they aim for better economies of scale, and second for the emphasis on emerging markets as a growth engine.
“Foodpanda has always been focusing on Central Eastern Europe as one of the most important food delivery markets. The recent acquisitions strengthen our leading position and will allow for an even better and more comprehensive offering to our customers” — said Ralf Wenzel, cofounder and MD of Foodpanda.
The companies that were announced today were primarily owned by their founders — meaning little in the way of VCs to drive up valuations or hard bargains. Together the deals cover delivery services for well over 1,000 restaurants, to add to existing Foodpanda operations in these markets (550+ for NetPincer, 550+ for Donesi.com and “hundreds” for Pauza.hr). The acquisitions come at a time of heated race among the bigger players in the food delivery market for more customers and market share.
