Barcelona-based Glovo, the on-demand delivery platform, has raised €450M in its Series F round of funding led by New York-based investment managers Lugard Road Capital and the Luxor Capital Group.
Besides, existing investors also participated in this round including Delivery Hero, Drake Enterprises, and GP Bullhound. The round reflects both the significant growth potential in the online delivery sector and the strong demand from existing shareholders to invest in the company.
To date, the delivery platform has delivered more than 190 million multi-category orders globally as mentioned on its website. And, in 2020 it experienced a growth rate of more than 300 per cent year-on-year.
Largest funding round in Spanish startup history
The raised capital will enable Glovo to invest in expanding its services in 20 markets in which it currently operates.
The company is currently operational in countries including Spain, Italy, Peru, Ukraine, Romania, Ecuador, Georgia, Costa Rica, Portugal, Poland, Morocco, Guatemala, Kazakhstan, Croatia, Kenya, Côte D’Ivoire, Honduras, Serbia, Moldova, Uganda, and Kyrgyzstan.
The funds will also help the company to focus on growing its newly-launched Q-Commerce division, which it claims is a significant part of its strategic commitment to multi-category deliveries in these markets.
Speaking on the development, Oscar Pierre, co-founder & CEO of Glovo, says “This investment will allow us to double-down in our core markets, accelerate our leadership position in places where we are already very strong and continue to expand our excellent Q-Commerce division, as well as bring new innovations to our unique multi-category offering to extend more choice to our customers.”
Glovo also mentions in a statement that this funding round is one of the largest in history for a Spanish startup.
Focus on Q-Commerce division and grocery category
The funding round will focus on Glovo’s Q-Commerce division and deepening its multi-category offerings in its operational markets. The company believes that the permanent shift in consumer habits will expect same-day and instant delivery. And, it claims that in its biggest operational cities, it is already providing an ultra-fast last-mile delivery within 10 minutes through its network of dark stores.
In addition to that, with a base of more than 10 million users, the company is also focusing on growing its grocery and retail categories through key local partnerships.
To boost the growth of its grocery category, Glovo seeks strategic partnerships similar to its deals with supermarkets such as Carrefour, Continente, and Kaufland, while also investing in its own infrastructure and fulfilment centres.
The company currently operates dark stores in cities including Barcelona, Madrid, Lisbon, and Milan, and will be opening similar stores in Valencia, Rome, Porto, and Bucharest, among others. Glovo aims to have 200 dark stores by the end of 2021.
Get anything delivered
The company was founded in 2015 by Gerard Olive, Miguel Vicente, Oscar Pierre, and Sacha Michaud. Glovo’s mobile application connects customers with independent local couriers, who acquire goods from any restaurant or shop in a city and also deliver urgent packages for a variable fee.
The platform’s features include geolocation, which allows customers to track their deliveries in real-time and locate the nearest glover (courier), thus optimising speed and distance.
Earlier this year, the company announced a €100M partnership with Swiss-based real estate firm Stoneweg to grow its network of dark stores and the hiring of a new CTO, Narek Verdian, who recently served as vice-president of engineering at American Express. Verdian will oversee the expansion of the engineering team from 300 to 500 at Glovo’s Barcelona headquarters and its tech hubs in Madrid and Warsaw.
