Uber has announced that it is completely ceasing operations of its food-delivery service “Eats” in 7 countries, as part of an ongoing change in market strategy.
“We have made the decision to discontinue Uber Eats in Czech Republic, Egypt, Honduras, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine, and Uruguay, and to wind down the Eats app and transition operations to Careem in UAE,” an Uber spokesman said. “This continues our strategy of focusing our energy and resources on our top Eats markets around the world” he added.
The decisions were made by the company to invest more to its business in countries which offer better prospects and align with the company’s ongoing strategy to be in first or second in all Eats markets.
“The discontinued and transferred markets represented 1% of Eats Gross Bookings and 4% of Eats Adjusted EBITDA losses in Q1 2020. Consistent with our stated strategy, we will look to reinvest these savings in priority markets where we expect a better return on investment”, said the company’s notice.
Clarifying, the company mentioned that Uber Rides will not be affected by the decision and the decision taken is not taken in view of the Covid-19 pandemic. Nevertheless, the service is seen focusing more on the grocery and essential supplies delivery following the trend amid the crisis.
Akin to Uber Eats, rival company Glovo announced its closure of operations in Turkey, Egypt, Uruguay and Peurto Rico due to comparable reasons. Eats also left South Korea in September 2019 and India in January 2020.
Uber Eats had been launched in India with a view to “revolutionize” the sector. However, the company had to face tough competition from well-established names such as Zomato and Swiggy. In December 2019 influx of reports stated the company’s acquisition by Zomato, and by January 2020 all of its registered riders, customers, restaurants and dineouts were diverted to the same, along with acquiring 9.99% stake in the Indian startup.
Uber Eats, by its own estimates, has seen a 30% rise in customers since the advent of CoronaVirus pandemic.
