Consumers ordered almost 10 % less from Just Eat Takeaway last year. While Northern Europe and the British Isles still saw growth in the last quarter, the year as a whole ended with a negative balance.
Fewer orders
Surveys have shown that people have been watching their food spending over the last year, due to the rise in prices. Just Eat Takeaway is not immune to this: excluding currency effects, the Gross Transaction Value (GTV) fell by 4 % last year. The number of orders even fell by 9 %.
In the fourth quarter, the total value of orders fell by 3 % at constant exchange rates, while the number of orders fell by 7 % year-on-year. Only Northern Europe (+ 4 % in GTV) and the UK and Ireland (+ 5 %) saw growth, which somewhat offset the 10 % decline in North America and the 13 % fall in Southern Europe. Orders also fell by 2 % in Northern Europe and the British Isles.
Positive cash flow
Nevertheless, the fourth quarter was the best of the year, CEO Jitse Groen says. Both the Northern European operations and those in the UK and Ireland achieved their highest quarterly GTV ever. He is also continuing his efforts to sell Grubhub in the United States.
Like many e-commerce companies, Just Eat Takeaway.com has started to focus on profitability rather than unlimited growth, an approach that seems to be working. Adjusted EBITDA for 2023 was higher than expected and is projected to be around 320 million euros. In addition, an important milestone has been reached: the company is now free cash flow positive.
