Turns out instant groceries is a tough game, no matter where you're located.
👉 Background: Gorillas (not to be confused with the band behind Feel Good Inc 🎵) is a Berlin-based instant grocery startup that launched in 2020. Much like Oz's Milkrun, Gorillas promises to delivery groceries in 10 minutes.
👉 What happened: Gorillas took off, becoming one of the fastest European startups to hit unicorn status. It expanded to over 12 European cities and 700K active customers. Just seven months ago the company raised nearly $1 billion.
👉 What else: Now, Gorillas has announced it will lay off around 300 employees AND exit four markets. It's interesting timing after the collapse of similar Aussie companies Send and Quicko, and highlights one of the biggest struggles in the this industry: differentiation.
💡 Differentiation is how businesses set themselves apart... It could be price, distribution, or delivery. And, in a highly competitive market, product differentiation can mean the difference between success and failure.
💡Even though differentiation is key, it's actually the biggest struggle in the instant grocery delivery market. At the end of the day, every player's just trying to get you the same goods in the same timeframe.
💡So while Send and Quicko ultimately failed in Oz… it might not be because of the country they started in. It could just be the kind of industry they’re playing in - and whether that is actually a viable industry in itself.
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