Food-delivery scale-up Takeaway.com is considering an IPO which values the company at 1 billion euro (1.1 billion dollar), Bloomberg reports based on people familiar with the matter.
Details aren't public yet. But if this turns out to be true Takeaway.com will become the second Dutch unicorn after Adyen. According to sources the company could go public this year, "if markets permit."
Takeaway.com, in The Netherlands better known as Thuisbezorgd, was founded by Jitse Groen in 1999. His business story is one of the most notorious among Dutch entrepreneurs and media: he started his business with 50 euro. Today he has raised nearly 90 million euro and is active in ten countries.
With the acquisition of Lieferando in 2014, Takeaway got access to markets like Germany, Poland, Austria and Switzerland. In 2013 the company acquired Vietnammm.com.
European competition
It's biggest competitors are Just Eat (UK) and Delivery Hero (Germany, RocketInternet backed). Just Eat is already listed, Delivery Hero is also aiming for an IPO this year.
Both companies are following the strategy of acquiring succesfull local food delivery startups. But as the Just Eat CEO said to the Financial Times earlier this year, "there's no greenfield left". It might be just a matter of time before one eats another.
Image by Emre Ayaroglu