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UAE grocery delivery startup InstaShop buys GroCart

By Shane McGinley
InstaShop GroCart InstaShop
GroCart partners with 200 suppliers to get their produce to retailers across the Mena region
  • InstaShop delivers groceries from 1,000 supermarkets
  • GroCart delivers goods to 200 Mena retailers
  • UAE grocery delivery market forecast to be worth $6.87bn by 2032

Grocery delivery app InstaShop is expanding into the wholesale sector with the acquisition of B2B operator GroCart.

The move comes as a new survey said that a third of UAE consumers are planning to spend more on food in the next year.

Founded in 2015 in Dubai, InstaShop operates in the UAE, Bahrain, Egypt and Lebanon, delivering items from around 1,000 supermarkets, pet shops, pharmacies and other retail outlets to around half a million active users.

GroCart focuses more on supply chain logistics, partnering with 200 suppliers to get their produce to retailers across the Mena region. The company aims to use the InstaShop backing to expand further into the Egyptian market. Financial details of the acquisition were not revealed.

InstaShop itself was bought by Germany’s Delivery Hero in 2020, in a deal worth $360 million on a cash and debt-free basis.

The UAE’s online grocery delivery market is estimated to be growing at an annual rate of 29 percent. It will be worth $6.87 billion by 2032, according to a report by SPER Market Research. 

The fast-paced growth was endorsed by a YouGov survey of 1,054 respondents in the UAE who were questioned between January 17 and February 1 this year.

It found that 36 percent of respondents are planning to increase their spending on food and beverages in the next 12 months.

However, the survey also found that food was the number one most price sensitive item for consumers, especially as the cost of living continues to rise in the UAE.

Mercer’s latest Cost of Living 2023 report, published this month, ranked Dubai 18th globally, 13 places higher than it was last year. Abu Dhabi also climbed 18 places to 43rd spot.

The YouGov survey found that the rising price of food produce was a concern for 44 percent of respondents.

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