Why food delivery companies are delivering more than just food

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Hi readers,

One of my friends is a huge fan of Pandamart, Foodpanda’s grocery delivery service. She’s used it for all sorts of reasons, be it buying eggs, bread, and ham at 10 pm after realizing she didn’t have anything for breakfast the next day or purchasing ice-cream and potato chips in order to fulfill random cravings in the middle of the afternoon.

The expansion of platforms like Foodpanda into grocery delivery is part of a larger trend we’re seeing around quick commerce (or q-commerce), which involves the immediate fulfilment of your orders. It’s also part of the bigger shift food delivery companies have been making into other kinds of delivery services.

Today we look at,

• Why food delivery startups want to deliver things that aren’t food
• A dairy alternative startup here in Southeast Asia
• Other newsy highlights such as how this edtech firm wants to address the skills gap and why HealthifyMe’s early investors are rejoicing

PREMIUM SUMMARY

Not just through the stomach

Food delivery is a rising segment in the Southeast Asian tech ecosystem, but players in the space are looking to diversify their offerings into adjacent areas, be it through parcel delivery or e-grocery services.

• All day, every day: One reason why food delivery firms want to start delivering other things is the fact that it provides drivers with a steady source of income throughout the day. After all, food delivery orders spike around lunch and dinner, but grocery orders and package delivery requests can come in at any time of the day.
• Better for the bottom line: Expanding their delivery offerings could also help food delivery companies tackle the question of driver costs. Driver payments account for a huge chunk of any food delivery firm’s expenses, and enabling these riders to carry out deliveries throughout the day could help keep those costs down.
• Ain’t so easy: Food delivery is a competitive space, but so are the e-grocery and last-mile parcel delivery segments. Companies looking to expand into these sectors will be operating in a new space and will be competing with well-established incumbents.

Read more: The rush among food delivery apps to deliver more than just food

STARTUP SPOTLIGHT

Getting some Mohjo

Over the last few years, dairy alternatives have been getting noticed in Southeast Asia – which is why it’s great news that Singapore-based Mohjo has raised an undisclosed amount in a seed round led by East Ventures.

The grass is greener in Ireland