Food delivery firm Deliveroo has said that it will hire 400 software engineers, data scientists and designers in the next 12 months to drive innovation on its platform.
The company said that the expansion will enable it to develop its logistics technology to help restaurants, delivery workers and customers.
Deliveroo, along with rivals Just Eat-Takeaway.com and Uber Eats, saw orders surge over the last year after COVID-19 lockdown measures closed restaurants.
Orders on Deliveroo's platform more than doubled in the first quarter to 71 million, it said in April, although it added that it expects growth to slow as restrictions eased.
Deliveroo Hikes Forecasts As Food Delivery Demand Stays Strong
Deliveroo recorded an 88% jump in quarterly food orders and raised its annual order value forecasts on Thursday July 8, as people remained hooked on having meals and groceries delivered to their home.
The food delivery firm, which connects customers with over 115,000 restaurants and grocers in the UK and 11 other countries including Ireland, predicted that gross transaction value (GTV) will grow by 50%-60% in 2021, compared with an earlier forecast of 30%-40%.
Shares in Deliveroo, which fell 30% in their London market debut in March, climbed 4% to 333.7 pence by 0805 GMT on July 8. They are still down 14% so far from their initial public offering (IPO) price.
Deliveroo said that investments in "growth opportunities" this year and its expectation that average order values will at some point revert towards pre-COVID levels led it to estimate that profit margins are likely to come in at the lower end of a 7.5% to 8% range it had given earlier.
"We believe trading [for Deliveroo] is likely to be driven by both businesses, food delivery and grocery," analysts at J.P. Morgan said in a client note. "The higher investments are not a surprise, given higher investments also for peers."
Just over half of Deliveroo's GTV - the monetary value of all orders minus any tips - came from the UK and Ireland during the quarter that ended on June 30, it said.
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