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Gorillas (company)

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For the virtual band, see Gorillaz.

Gorillas
IndustryOnline platform for convenience delivery
Founded
  • May 2020; 4 years ago (2020-05),
  • in Berlin, Germany
Founders
  • Jörg Kattner
  • Kağan Sümer
  • Ronny Shibley (co-founder)
DefunctMay 2024
Headquarters
Berlin
,
Germany
Areas served
Germany, Netherlands, United Kingdom, United States
Owner
  • Independent (2020–22)
  • Getir[1] (2022–present)
Number of employees
  • ~10,000
  • (as of November 2022)[2]
Websitegorillas.io/en

Gorillas was a German ultrafast grocery delivery company which used dark stores between its founding in 2020 and its end in May 2024.[3] Users could order grocery products through the Gorillas app.

In December 2022, the company was acquired by Getir.[4][1] As of July 2023, it operates in around 35 cities from roughly 130 locations in four countries. It sold its Belgium operations to Efarmz and withdrew from Italy, Spain, Denmark, and most recently France.[5][6][7]

Gorillas bikes outside one of its dark stores

In June 2023, it was announced that Getir-owned Gorillas would begin withdrawing from France. In April 2024, Getir and Gorillas announced their withdrawal from all its operating locations with only Getir remaining in operation in its home market of Turkey.[8]

History

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The company was founded in May 2020 by Kağan Sümer, Jörg Kattner, Jeff Hester, and Ronny Shibley in Berlin. They aimed to deliver groceries and other supermarket goods ordered through its app by bike courier, charging supermarket prices.

Initially starting in Berlin, it rapidly spread to dozens of European cities and expanded in America. In 2022, Gorillas operated in multiple cities including Amsterdam, London, Paris, Munich and New York, USA.[9]

In December 2020, the company raised $44 million in Series A funding, followed by $290 million in Series B funding in March 2021 and almost $1 billion in Series C funding in October 2021.[10][11][12] The last investment round, valued the startup at 1 billion, making it a unicorn in just 9 months, the fastest company in Germany to do so.[13]

Sümer stated in 2022 that his aim was to raise $700 million of new financing to expand the company and make it profitable.[14][15]

In June 2022, Gorillas announced it would launch its own products for sale in Germany, France, the Netherlands and England. Items sold under Gorillas' label include spreads, pasta, coffee and beer.[16]

Following its rapid expansion in the first two years of its existence, Gorillas failed to live up to financial expectations. As a consequence, in 2022, it ended operations in Belgium, Italy and Spain. In England, it closed all operations with the exception of those in London. It also cancelled plans to enter other markets such as Switzerland and Australia.[17]

In December 2022, Getir, a competitor based in Istanbul, acquired Gorillas for $1.2 billion.[4][1][18]

Business model

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Gorillas' slogan is faster than you, emphasizing speedy delivery.[10]

The business model is based on that of goPuff, which was founded in Philadelphia in 2013.[19]

Gorillas sells over 2000 products including fresh fruit and vegetables, drinks and some household items, which are delivered by bicycle couriers. Food not sold within the best-before date is either given employees, given to charity or local food banks, or sold to customers at a significant discount.

Controversies

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Further information: 2021 Gorillas strikes

Some employees have criticized Gorillas for bad working conditions, including inadequate equipment, pressure to deliver quickly, and deliveries weighing too much, causing many to complain of back pain. Riders also report not being paid correctly or on time.[20]

In October 2021 Gorillas fired 350 employees in Berlin for participating in a wildcat strike.[21] According to the Gorillas Workers Collective, which "represents the company's non-unionised delivery workers".[22]

In November 2021 the company purchased 1,200 state-of-the-art e-bikes specially designed to meet its cyclists' needs and renewed all its cyclists' equipment including PPE.[23] The company said that it offered its 10,000 employees benefits including health insurance, a salary above the minimum wage, paid leave and a complete riders' kit. In Germany, the Netherlands and England, Gorillas introduced a bonus scheme for its riders.[24]

In February 2023, The Independent reported that Gorillas' “Whatever London Wants” advertising campaign had been "banned over ‘irresponsible’ drug, sex and alcohol content" and for "featuring 'irresponsible' references to drug use and excessive alcohol consumption." The watchdog stated "that the adverts normalised illicit drug use and harmful drinking."[25]

Investments

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Gorillas has been the focus of high-value investments since it was founded. Gorillas' value in round A funds rose by $44 million in December 2020, in round B financing by $290 million in March 2021, and in round C funds by approximately $1 billion in October 2021. The company acquired French competitor Frichti and entered into an alliance with Just Eat.[26][27][28]

Locations

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Gorillas used to operate in around 35 cities across four countries, prior to it closing permanently in May 2024.

Country Cities
Germany Augsburg, Berlin, Bonn, Bremen, Cologne, Darmstadt, Dresden, Düsseldorf, Essen, Frankfurt, Fürth, Hamburg, Hannover, Heidelberg, Karlsruhe, Leipzig, Mannheim, Munich, Nuremberg, Offenbach, Stuttgart
Netherlands Amsterdam, Arnhem, The Hague, Haarlem, Nijmegen, Rotterdam, Utrecht
United Kingdom London
United States New York City

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Tuncay, Ebru; Dey, Mrinmay (9 December 2022). "Turkish quick delivery company Getir to buy rival Gorillas in $1.2b deal". DealStreetAsia.
  2. ^ "Gorillas held its first ever Partner Conference". Gorillas Blog. 5 October 2022.
  3. ^ Darmody, Jenny (26 March 2021). "Grocery delivery start-up Gorillas hits unicorn status". Silicon Republic.
  4. ^ a b Cantrill, Aggi; Kandemir, Asli; Tan, Gillian (9 December 2022). "Rapid-Delivery Startup Getir Buys Rival Gorillas in $1.2 Billion Deal". Bloomberg. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
  5. ^ "Gorillas announces deal with Efarmz in Belgium". Gorillas Blog. 23 June 2022.
  6. ^ Simonetta, Biagio (4 July 2022). "Gorillas lascia l'Italia e licenzia i suoi dipendenti" [Gorillas leaves Italy and fires its employees]. Il Sole 24 Ore (in Italian).
  7. ^ "Groupe Casino: Casino Group and Gorillas announce the signing of a strategic memorandum of understanding". Bloomberg. 4 November 2021.
  8. ^ Knieps, Lisa Ksienrzyk, Stephan (24 April 2024). "Lieferdienst: Getir und Gorillas verschwinden Mitte Mai aus Deutschland". www.wiwo.de (in German). Retrieved 29 April 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  9. ^ "Gorillas is carbon neutral in all own operations". Gorillas Blog. 14 March 2022.
  10. ^ a b O'Hear, Steve (11 December 2020). "Gorillas, the on-demand grocery delivery startup taking Berlin by storm, has raised $44M Series A". TechCrunch.
  11. ^ O'Hear, Steve (25 March 2021). "Gorillas, the on-demand grocery delivery startup, raises $290M and 'surpasses' $1B valuation". TechCrunch.
  12. ^ Lomas, Natasha (19 October 2021). "Gorillas grabs 'close to' $1BN, Series C values the on-demand grocery delivery biz at $2.1BN". TechCrunch.
  13. ^ Ksienrzyk, Lisa (31 March 2021). "Exklusiv: Gorillas steigt mit 245-Millionen-Runde zum Unicorn auf" [Exclusive: Gorillas rises to Unicorn with 245 million round]. Business Insider (in German).
  14. ^ Levingston, Ivan; Tan, Gillian; Tse, Crystal (25 February 2022). "Startup Gorillas Planning to Raise $700 Million of New Funding". Bloomberg.
  15. ^ "Delivery Startup Gorillas Looks to Raise $700M". PYMNTS. 27 February 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  16. ^ "Gorillas enters the private label market". Gorillas Blog. 6 June 2022.
  17. ^ Lunden, Ingrid (24 May 2022). "Berlin's Gorillas lays off 300, exits four markets". TechCrunch. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  18. ^ Cameron, Isabel (1 March 2023). "Getir to cut hundreds of jobs as it delays office move". Charged. Retrieved 13 March 2023.
  19. ^ Schader, Peer (8 June 2020). "Der rollende Supermarkt: Gorillas verspricht die 10-Minuten-Lebensmittel-Lieferung in Berlin" [The rolling supermarket: Gorillas promise 10-minute food delivery in Berlin]. Supermarktblog (in German). Retrieved 21 January 2022.
  20. ^ Geiger, Gabriel (24 May 2021). "Riders for Europe's Delivery 'Unicorn' Report Grueling Delivery Times and Back Pain". vice.com. Vice. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  21. ^ Geiger, Gabriel (5 October 2021). "Gorillas Delivery App Fires Workers for Striking". vice.com. Vice. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  22. ^ Bateman, Tom (8 October 2021). "Gorillas delivery app fires hundreds of Berlin workers for strikes over pay and working conditions". euronews.com. Euronews. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  23. ^ "Gorillas is renewing its fleet with 1,200 e-bikes". Gorillas Blog. Berlin. 23 November 2021.
  24. ^ "Riders share their feedback on new bonus program". Gorillas Blog. 14 January 2022.
  25. ^ Gregory, Andy (16 February 2023). "Adverts for food delivery service banned over 'irresponsible' drug, sex and alcohol content". The Independent. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  26. ^ Dillet, Romain (24 January 2022). "Gorillas to acquire Frichti in latest instant grocery consolidation". TechCrunch.
  27. ^ Cameron, Isabel (11 March 2022). "Gorillas finalises Frichti acquisition". Charged.
  28. ^ Neerman, Pauline (10 March 2022). "Gorillas acquires Frichti, joins Just Eat collaboration". RetailDetail.
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