Glovo, the on-demand delivery unicorn, today announced that it has entered into a strategic partnership with Swiss-based real estate firm, Stoneweg, as the company expands its newly-launched Q-Commerce (quick commerce) division.
The agreement will see Stoneweg invest €100 million into building and refurbishing prime city real estate in some of Glovo’s key markets. This will help accelerate the expansion of the brand’s infrastructure and fulfilment centres, as more retail partners sign up to its Q-Commerce offering.
Glovo’s initial focus will be on growing its network of dark stores in Spain, Italy, Portugal, Romania and additional countries under review in Europe. It currently operates 18 dark stores globally — in cities such as Barcelona, Madrid, Lisbon and Milan — and is now looking to open similar stores in Valencia, Rome, Porto and Bucharest, among others. The company aims to have 100 dark stores by the end of 2021.
As a pioneer in the field of multi-category delivery, which has been part of its service since its inception, Glovo partners with some of the world’s biggest brands including Unilever, IKEA, Nestle and L’Oréal, and supermarkets such as Carrefour, Continente, and Kaufland. To date, the delivery platform has delivered more than 12 million multi-category orders globally and in 2020 it experienced a growth rate of more than 300% year-on-year. The company’s commitment to consolidate its Q-Commerce division comes as a direct response to changing consumer sentiment and demand for instant and same-day delivery.
Oscar Pierre, Co-founder and CEO of Glovo, said: “We believe that the third-generation of commerce is already upon us. Following the close of Stoneweg’s investment, we are consolidating our strategic commitment to Q-Commerce, which will allow us to better connect people with a wide variety of available products in their cities.”
“In the wake of COVID-19, we believe that dark stores represent the future of post-pandemic retail, and I think we’ll see a permanent shift in consumer habits towards same-day and instant delivery. We’re excited to continue to expand our offering, so that all types of businesses, from local independent stores to multi-national chains, can reach more and more customers thanks to new technological solutions and highly efficient infrastructure.”
Joaquín Castellví, Founding Partner and Head of Acquisitions for Europe for Stoneweg, said: “We are excited about this partnership with Glovo, a dynamic company with a culture similar to ours: to be at the forefront of the needs of its market. Glovo’s Q-Commerce division responds to the rapidly evolving demands of the modern consumer. For Stoneweg, it also represents an opportunity to offer our clients to diversify into a new class of retail asset through consolidated cities where Glovo operates — in a segment with great growth potential, accelerated by the situation we are experiencing ”.
Founded in 2015, Glovo is the baby amongst the European scaleups taking the lead in the ‘on-demand’ delivery race. Despite having the smallest team of +3K employees compared to Deliveroo and Delivery Hero, the startup has expanded to 19 countries and 400+ cities, more than its older counterpart Deliveroo.
