Glovo responds to new market needs with acquisition

Glovo has acquired Portuguese-based food delivery startup Kitch. 

Kitch’s technology allows restaurants to implement their own sales channel and to aggregate and manage orders received through other channels and platforms. The deal will see Kitch continue to operate fully independently, and thus the company will continue to support and promote the services of all types of restaurants – with main focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Kitch joins Glovo together with Spain-based WinDelivery, a startup recently acquired by Glovo, that provides technology services to restaurant chains. As a result, Kitch’s technology will continue to support restaurants of all sizes, with a core focus on independent restaurants.

As with the acquisitions of Lola market and Mercadão last year, the aim is to replicate Kitch’s success in the 25 countries where Glovo is available, with an initial expansion into Italy and Georgia.

The Kitch team, led by founders Rui Bento and Nuno Rodrigues, will maintain full independence of its technology and operations. Kitch’s team will also remain autonomous, based in Portugal and, it expects to grow by 50 people by the end of June. Kitch will also remain committed to providing the best service to all restaurants, working in close partnership with different operators in the delivery sector, and ensuring the protection and confidentiality of their data.

Through this agreement, Glovo wants to offer partner restaurants all the products and services they need, customising and improving their delivery experience. Restaurants will now have access to new technological solutions that they can adopt according to their needs, whether boosting delivery sales with delivery apps or launching their independent direct-to-consumer store with integrated deliveries.

Ana Champetier, Vice President of Food Innovation at Glovo, said: “With the acquisition of Kitch and WinDelivery we will be able to respond to new market needs. Restaurants are showing a growing interest in growing their online sales, and we want to be their partner in this journey, going beyond their presence in our marketplace. Building their own online store, managing their customers directly and improving their kitchen operations are important steps for any restaurant that wants to grow its delivery business, and we want to make their life easier with easy, accessible and empowering solutions.”

Rui Bento, CEO of Kitch, added: “At Kitch we want all restaurants, regardless of their size and where they are based, to make the most of their Digital orders. We want them to be able to go digital without letting go of their independence. This is why we are very excited with this step, which gives us the ability to make the Kitch technology available to a wide community of restaurants across the more than 20 countries served by Glovo. Even though we will continue to operate independently, we feel that we share with Glovo the same vision of the services we want to provide to restaurants.”