The home delivery company Glovo lost a total of 474.8 million in 2021, five times its red numbers compared to the previous year, although it recorded a record turnover that rose to 590, 9 million, an increase of 64.2%.
This is stated in the annual report published by the German Delivery Hero, Glovo’s largest shareholder, which also explained that the net assets of the company, based in Barcelona, stand at 685 million. The debts contracted by Glovo amount to 531.5 million euros: 223 in the short term and 305 in the long term.
After experiencing strong growth during the worst time of the pandemic, when home food orders increased exponentially, companies in the sector are experiencing a difficult time given the loss of demand.
However, in recent months, Glovo has acquired several companies to continue to increase its turnover: this is the case of the Portuguese Kitch and Mercadao or the Spanish WinDelivery and Lola Market.
The Barcelona-based company not only focuses on the business of distributing food from home restaurants, but also operates its own supermarkets from which it delivers products to households.
Delivery Hero, Glovo’s investor since 2018, took control of more than 90% of the company in an operation announced on December 31 and still pending its final closure. Germany has already projected that Glovo will record an operating loss of 330 million in 2022.
The Barcelona company has also seen how the so-called Rider Law came into force in 2021, which aims to end the use of false self-employed as distributors by forcing them to be hired as employees and which has put Glovo at the center of the controversy, by maintaining a part of the cast with self-employed workers. In 2021, the Deliveroo platform also left Spain, which has opened up a new opportunity for Glovo to gain a market share that Just Eat and Ubereats also aspire to.