Get to know new Chamber members, Deliveroo

We caught up with new Brighton Chamber members, Deliveroo about supporting local restaurateurs, innovation and Brighton’s favourite dishes.

 Tell us about Deliveroo and what you’re up to in Brighton?

The Deliveroo story is simple. When he moved to London, Deliveroo’s founder and CEO Will Shu was surprised to find that it was nearly impossible to get great quality food from local restaurants delivered.

By transforming the way people think about food delivery - offering a fast, transparent and reliable service - Deliveroo is helping restaurants attract new customers, grow their profits and take on more staff.

Will was the first rider - and he still delivers to this day. Deliveroo now works with over 50,000 riders who deliver from over 50,000 restaurants in over 500 towns and cities across the globe. Deliveroo is proud to be a British company - we have our global HQ in central London.

Once the business had started to grow in London, Brighton was naturally the first step for the company outside of the capital. Deliveroo has been operating in Brighton since December 2014 and today works with over 300 restaurants across the city.  

Brighton and Hove are both incredibly exciting for Deliveroo - it’s one of our biggest local markets in the UK, the range of restaurants is impressive and there is great interest from customers in trying new cuisines. Hove is also home to ‘Editions’ - one of Deliveroo’s unique ‘super kitchens’ sites.

Why did you join Brighton Chamber?

We work with a vast range of local businesses across the Brighton and Hove area and were keen to play our part in the local business community. We were really keen to find opportunities to engage with other businesses, find new partners and to find a way of sharing news about Deliveroo and some of our local success stories. Brighton and Hove Chamber of Commerce was the natural starting point for doing this.

Tell us about how you’re helping restaurateurs develop their business?

There has been a huge boom in recent years in the restaurant delivery market and this looks likely to continue to grow. Recent industry analysts found people living in the UK are spending £4.2 billion a year having food delivered to their homes, an increase of 73 per cent in 10 years. This is a huge opportunity for food businesses of all sizes across Brighton and Hove.  Deliveroo provides our partners with access to this growing market.

Is doing business in Brighton and Hove different to elsewhere in the UK?

What is so impressive about Brighton and Hove is the sheer extent of food options available to local residents. We work with a varied mix of great high street favourites but the range of local independents is really impressive. Brighton seems a great place to start and grown a food business.

Hove is also particularly important to us  - it's home to Deliveroo Editions. These delivery-only super kitchens on Olive Road provide a home in Hove for new businesses and local favourites to extend their reach  to new customers.

At this site we are working with a great range of partners. Kambis, is a cult hit with locals and offers a great range of Lebanese food, Brighton favourite Moshimo has brought its amazing sushi and poke selection to the people of Hove whilst VIP (Very Italian Pizza) delivers its authentic neapolitan pizza to more people in the local area.  We’ve also provide space for pop ups, new or existing brands to get their food delivered to the people of Hove. In recent weeks, Carlitto Burrito, Lost Boys Chicken and Get Sum Dim sum and have started trading out of the site at Hove.

What is Deliveroo’s approach to Innovation?

Innovation and tech is at the core of our business. We are always developing new ways of supporting our partners and improving our service for customers.

One of the most interesting thing about Deliveroo is how we use data and tech to allocate orders. Central to our operations is the ‘Frank’ algorithm. Frank finds the most optimal way to deliver food from restaurant to customer and has cut average delivery time by nearly 20%. It has also improved allocation of orders and reduced restaurant waiting time, meaning riders can now complete more deliveries as they travel with food for an average of just six minutes.

We also innovating in other ways our ways. We were the first delivery company to offer our riders free insurance, we’re committed to reducing our use of single use plastics and were investing in and trialling zero emissions vehicles in different parts of the UK.    

Tell us a little-known fact about Deliveroo in Brighton and Hove

What's amazing in Brighton and Hove is the sheer range of food delivery options. However, every city has its favourites. Every December we release the Deliveroo 100 - our 100 top most ordered dishes and the town in which they are ordered. This year Brighton gets in the list four times with chicken wings, burritos, Piri Piri Chicken and Katsu Curry! 

If you want to contribute to the Chamber blog, contact us on hannah@brightonchamber.co.uk