Just Eat Takeaway.com to combine with Grubhub to create a leading global online food delivery player

AMSTERDAM: Just Eat Takeaway.com, and Grubhub Inc. have entered into a definitive agreement whereby the Company is to acquire 100% of the shares of Grubhub in an all-stock transaction to create the world’s largest online food delivery company outside of China, measured by Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) and revenues.

Under the terms of the Transaction, Grubhub shareholders will be entitled to receive American depositary receipts (ADRs) representing 0.6710 Just Eat Takeaway.com ordinary shares in exchange for each Grubhub share, representing an implied value of $75.15 for each Grubhub share and implying a total equity consideration of $7.3 billion.

The transaction represents Just Eat Takeaway.com’s entry into online food delivery in the United States and builds on the strategic rationale for its recent merger with Just Eat plc. A combined Just Eat Takeaway.com and Grubhub  will become the world’s largest online food delivery company outside of China, with strong brands connecting restaurant partners with their customers in 25 countries.

The Combined Group will be built around four of the world’s largest profit pools in online food delivery: the U.S., the United Kingdom (UK), the Netherlands and Germany, increasing the combined group’s ability to deploy capital and resources to strengthen its competitive positions in all its markets.

The Combined Group has strong leadership positions in almost all countries in which it is present and will become a significant player in North America. Just Eat Takeaway.com owns the leading Canadian business SkipTheDishes. The Combined Group is one of the few profitable players in the space and processed approximately 593 million orders in 2019 with more than 70 million combined active customers globally.

Both the Managing Board and the Supervisory Board of Just Eat Takeaway.com and the Board of Directors of Grubhub are recommending the Transaction to their respective shareholders. Jitse Groen, CEO and founder of Just Eat Takeaway.com, has entered into a voting and support agreement, and subject to and in accordance with the terms thereof, has committed to vote in favour of the Transaction at the Just Eat Takeaway.com extraordinary general meeting (EGM).

Jitse Groen, CEO and founder of Just Eat Takeaway.com, said: “Matt and I are the two remaining food delivery veterans in the sector, having started our respective businesses at the turn of the century, albeit on two different continents. Both of us have a firm belief that only businesses with high-quality and profitable growth will sustain in our sector. I am excited that we can create the world’s largest food delivery business outside China. We look forward to welcoming Matt and his team to our company and working with them in the future.”

Matt Maloney, CEO and founder of Grubhub, commented: “When Grubhub and Seamless were founded, the online takeout industry didn’t exist in the U.S. My vision was to transform the delivery and pick-up ordering experience. Like so many other entrepreneurs, we started modestly – restaurant by restaurant in our Chicago neighbourhood. Today, Grubhub is a leader across North America.

“I’ve known Jitse since 2007 and his story is much like mine. Combining the companies that started it all will mean that two trailblazing start-ups have become a clear global leader. We share a focus on a hybrid model that places extra value on volume at independent restaurants, driving profitable growth. Supported by Just Eat Takeaway.com, we intend to accelerate our mission to be the fastest, best and most rewarding way to order food from your favourite local restaurants in North America and around the world. We could not be more excited.”

Just Eat Takeaway.com’s mission has consistently been focused on becoming the best food delivery company on the planet. Since its founding in 2000, Takeaway.com has chosen only to enter into markets in which it believes it can become a leader and be profitable.

In fact, it is one of the rare examples of a profitable food delivery platform. The profits in the Netherlands helped secure a leadership position in Germany and other Continental European countries. The growth and profitability of the Takeaway.com businesses eventually allowed it to merge with Just Eat, another profitable European food delivery business. As a result, Just Eat Takeaway.com has leading positions in three of the world’s four largest profit pools for food delivery: the U.K., Germany and the Netherlands.

Just Eat Takeaway.com management believes that Grubhub is the best food delivery company in the U.S. and it is the only one which is culturally similar to Just Eat Takeaway.com. It has its origins in marketplace, and unlike most other food delivery companies, it has consistently been EBITDA positive. The competitive situation in the U.S. has changed over the past few years.

In response, Grubhub successfully transformed its business into a hybrid model to meet the heightened competition. Just Eat Takeaway.com management believes that this is the right strategy. Success in the U.S. depends on deploying the right mix of logistics and marketplace region-by-region, a balance Grubhub has achieved with profitable leading positions in key U.S. population centres. Despite this progress, the U.S. remains an underpenetrated market, with a tremendous TAM. It is nowhere near its end-state.

Grubhub as part of Just Eat Takeaway.com will become a much stronger business. Just Eat Takeaway.com owns SkipTheDishes, the clear leader in Canada. By building a North American leadership position, Just Eat Takeaway.com will be able to further strengthen both the Canadian and U.S. businesses. Just Eat Takeaway.com will prioritise sustainable growth over profits, as this has been a major driver of its strategy and success in Europe. Grubhub has leading positions in a number of large U.S. cities, including New York. Just Eat Takeaway.com intends to invest in expanding these leading positions.