Mississippi Ventures, the investment fund of Dutch ‘Jumbo family’ Van Eerd, will take financial stake in Gorillas

Earlier this year, Silicon Canals reported that Noord-Brabant-based Jumbo Supermarkets and Berlin-based grocery delivery startup Gorillas agreed on a strategic partnership in the Netherlands and the Flanders region of Belgium.

Jumbo Supermarkets and Gorillas announced on Monday that they are further strengthening their partnership. Mississippi Ventures, the investment fund of ‘Jumbo family’ Van Eerd, will take a financial stake in Gorillas. The amount of the deal remains undisclosed.

Sponsorship and expansion

Besides the investment, Gorillas will now become an ‘important’ co-sponsor of the cycling team ‘Team Jumbo-Visma’ for several years, allowing the company to further increase its international visibility.

The partnership will now see Jumbo supplying the warehouses of Gorillas in the Netherlands and Belgium with its products. Besides well-known A-brands, Jumbo supplies a selection of its own-brand products as well as the popular food items from the La Place range. Both the companies will also work on several initiatives, such as co-location in the inner cities, to further expand the strategic partnership.

Sadik Cevik, GM of Gorillas Netherlands, says, “The Netherlands is an important market for Gorillas. It is therefore of great value to work intensively with a company like Jumbo that knows the market well and always thinks ahead and looks to the future. With the capital investment of Mississippi Ventures and the sponsorship of Team Jumbo-Visma, we further expand our partnership. As an instant grocery delivery company in which our riders play an important role, it feels like a logical match to connect with this successful cycling team with global exposure. There are many great partnership initiatives ahead of us.”

About Jumbo

Jumbo is a Dutch chain of supermarkets of the Royal Jumbo Food Group. With a market share of 21 per cent, it is the second-largest supermarket chain in the Netherlands, behind Albert Heijn. The company has more than 700 supermarkets, including a number of Food Markets, Jumbo City(s), and online order and delivery services via Jumbo.com.

Jumbo City is a convenience store concept and the group combines elements of the regular Jumbo stores, Foodmarkt and restaurant chain La Place. In 2009, the company took over the supermarket chain Super de Boer and then took over C1000 (a Dutch supermarket chain) in 2012. In 2016, Jumbo also acquired the foodservice formula La Place. In 2018, the acquisition of part of EMTÉ followed. It opened its first stores across the Belgian border in 2019.

Ton van Veen, CFO at Koninklijke Jumbo Food Group, says, “In the fast-growing market for home delivery of groceries, Jumbo and Gorillas benefit greatly from each other’s unique position. By taking these new steps, we further shape our partnership. At Jumbo, we see a lot of potential in instant delivery, which will allow us to tap into new customer groups in the big cities.”

“Further expansion of our partnership, including offering the fast delivery service of Gorillas through our own online channels, is currently being worked out with Gorillas. Our independent entrepreneurs are also involved in this process. By working closely together, we will be able to respond even better to the changing needs and wishes of our customers,” adds Ton van Veen.

“Fastest unicorn in Europe”

Founded in 2020 by Kağan Sümer, Gorillas is a grocery delivery provider that claims to deliver desired goods from cart to doorstep in just 10 minutes. Its users benefit from access to more than 2,500 essential items at retail prices for a delivery fee of just over $2.

In 2021, the company raised approx €1.29B in funding and currently sits at a valuation of $3.1B – also making it the fastest unicorn in Europe. It provides its riders with fixed employment contracts, health insurance, employer-financed accident insurance, and paid vacation. Their services are operational in Germany, France, Italy, the US, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, the UK, and Denmark.