Deliveroo to expand with Co Down town among 100 new locations

By Henry Saker-Clark, PA City Reporter

Deliveroo has said it plans to expand into around 100 new towns and cities across the UK in 2021.

The takeaway delivery business has seen demand surge over the past year as customers stayed at home and restaurants have shut their doors to diners during the pandemic.

The company said it plans to take this momentum into 2021 with an expansion strategy intended to reach another four million potential customers.

It revealed it will launch in new regions across the UK, Yeovil, Bangor (Northern Ireland), East Kilbride, King’s Lynn, Scarborough, Llanelli and Exmouth, although the full list of locations has not yet been announced.

Deliveroo currently operates in over 200 locations and said it will also expand its reach from these existing sites over the year.

In 2020, Deliveroo rapidly grew its number of restaurant partnerships as thousands more businesses signed up to the delivery business in light of coronavirus restrictions.

The company, which has been touted to float on the stock market later this year, has also grown with a raft of partnerships with grocery retailers, such as Aldi, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Waitrose.

Carlo Mocci, Deliveroo’s chief business officer for UK and Ireland, said: “We are pleased to announce that we expect to launch in around 100 new towns and cities across the UK and expand our reach in existing areas throughout 2021 with the aim of reaching almost two-thirds of the population.

“With further lockdown measures now in place across the UK, we want to do everything possible to help households get the food they need and want and play our role to make sure families across the country have a wide selection of amazing food, drink and household products to order in as little as 30 minutes.”

The company also said it created work for an additional 25,000 riders last year, taking its number of riders to more than 50,000.