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Uber to buy Boston-based catering marketplace ezCater for $2.3 billion
Коротко
Uber announced Tuesday it is acquiring Boston-based ezCater, a workplace catering marketplace, for $2.3 billion in an all-cash deal. Uber said the purchase will expand Uber Eats and Uber for Business by helping restaurants win larger catering orders. Boston-based ezCater was founded in 2007 and had planned to go public on its own a few years ago.
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Uber announced Tuesday that it is acquiring Boston-based ezCater, a platform for catering and workplace meals, for $2.3 billion. TechCrunch reported the transaction is all-cash. Uber said the acquisition will expand its existing Uber Eats and Uber for Business operations, allowing restaurants it works with to increase their order size and customer base. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
ezCater, located in Boston's financial district, was founded in 2007 as an online technology platform to help businesses and offices buy large food orders from local eateries, the Boston Globe reported. It has grown into a national catering marketplace with more than 140,000 restaurant partners nationwide and was valued at more than $1.6 billion, according to the announcement and past disclosures cited by the Globe. TechCrunch reported that Uber said ezCater generated over $2.5 billion in gross bookings over the last 12 months, and that the company was bootstrapped for seven years before raising its first $4 million round in 2014. [ 2 , 3 ]
“Catering is a big business, and can be a huge revenue stream for restaurants,” Uber chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi said in a statement carried by both the Globe and TechCrunch. “With Uber's reach, we can bring that experience to millions more customers and help restaurants win more of these valuable orders.” [ 2 , 3 ]
“We're thrilled to be joining forces with Uber,” ezCater chief executive Nihad Rahman said in a statement. “Our team is proud of what we've built. The leading platform for workplace catering, and a major growth channel for our restaurant partners.” [ 2 ]
The Boston Globe described the deal as a quick exit for a promising local tech company that had plans to go public on its own just a few years ago. It noted the sale comes a day after PTC, a leading local software company, announced it is being acquired by French conglomerate Schneider Electric, and that many in Boston remember Uber buying liquor delivery service Drizly for $1 billion in 2021 only to shutter the brand three years later. [ 2 ]
ezCater nearly collapsed during the COVID pandemic as offices shifted to work-from-home, with sales dropping 85 percent and 420 workers laid off, the Globe reported. The company rebounded after shifting to a business model that steered away from white-collar offices, according to the report. TechCrunch reported the acquisition is the latest in a run of moves by Uber to grow its food delivery business, including its pending purchase of Delivery Hero for $15 billion and investments in and partnerships with drone delivery companies Zipline and Flytrex. [ 2 , 3 ]
Почему это важно
The deal moves a large workplace-catering marketplace inside Uber's delivery and business units, which Uber says gives its restaurant partners access to bigger orders. For Boston, it follows a software company's sale to a French buyer a day earlier, and local outlets recall Uber's 2021 purchase of liquor delivery service Drizly, which it later shut down.
Ключевые факты
- Uber announced Tuesday it is acquiring ezCater for $2.3 billion. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- TechCrunch reported the transaction is all-cash. [ 3 ]
- ezCater is a Boston-based online marketplace for catering and workplace meals, founded in 2007. [ 2 , 3 ]
- Uber said the acquisition will expand its Uber Eats and Uber for Business operations. [ 2 ]
- ezCater has more than 140,000 restaurant partners nationwide, according to the announcement and past disclosures. [ 2 ]
- Uber said ezCater generated over $2.5 billion in gross bookings over the last 12 months. [ 3 ]
- During the COVID pandemic, ezCater's sales dropped 85 percent and the company laid off 420 workers, the Boston Globe reported. [ 2 ]
Подтверждено несколькими источниками
- Uber is acquiring ezCater for $2.3 billion, as announced on Tuesday. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Uber chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi said catering is a big business and a potential revenue stream for restaurants, and that Uber's reach can bring the experience to more customers. [ 2 , 3 ]
- The acquisition is intended to expand Uber Eats and Uber for Business. [ 2 , 3 ]
Пока неясно
- Whether ezCater's brand and operations will continue as before after the deal closes. The documents describe the acquisition but do not say what happens to ezCater's brand or operations afterwards.
- When the transaction is expected to close and whether it requires regulatory approval. No document gives a closing date or any approval process.
- ezCater's valuation of more than $1.6 billion is attributed by the Boston Globe to the announcement and past disclosures only. Only one document states this figure, and no other outlet reports it.
- The Boston Globe's report that ezCater had plans to go public on its own a few years ago is not corroborated elsewhere. Single-source claim.