Foodpanda, the Singaporean food delivery giant, has confirmed layoffs, marking its third round of job cuts as it aims to boost agility in the fiercely competitive food delivery sector.
In a report by CNBC, The company’s APAC CEO, Jakob Sebastian Angele, emphasized the need for streamlined operations and efficiency. “Our company priority right now is to become leaner, more efficient, and even more agile. To do this, we need to streamline our operations so we can take on a more structured approach for the coming days,” he said in a letter to employees.
Angele explained that the company is reviewing its organizational structure and realigning reporting lines for consistency and focus. Details regarding the number of affected employees and departments remain undisclosed. This follows layoffs in February and September of the previous year, amid economic challenges.
These layoffs align with the parent company, Delivery Hero, exploring potential buyers for parts of its Southeast Asian food delivery business, including operations in various Southeast Asian markets. Among potential buyers, Grab, a major competitor with a dominant 54% market share in 2022, has emerged as a candidate.
Sachin Mittal, Head of Telecom, Media, and Technology Research at DBS Bank, noted the competition’s impact on Foodpanda’s market share, leading to potential exits from some markets due to its standalone delivery model.
Competitors like Grab and Deliveroo have also downsized this year amid a growing resumption of normalcy after pandemic restrictions, which also prompted some players to offer their services to dine-in formats in restaurants as well. Foodpanda has earlier scaled back its German operations and has completely left the Japanese market.
