Online food delivery startup hellofood, which is present in almost 40 countries worldwide, has acquired Otlob, its major competitor in Egypt, from previous owner A15.
Launched in 1999 as one of the first Egyptian online companies, Otlob is similar to hellofood in that it offers restaurants greater visibility and allows consumers to order food online.
The company – which operates in Cairo, Alexandria, Tanta, Hurghada, Port Said and Assiut – processes thousands of orders each day from over 500 restaurant partners, including the likes of McDonalds, Cook Door, Burger King and Pizza Hut.
“We have been deeply impressed with Otlob’s performance and scale for some time, and this acquisition will cement Otlob’s market-leading position in the massive Egyptian market. Combined with hellofood’s international expertise in the Middle East, Africa, and globally, Otlob is now poised for turbocharged growth,” said Khalil Bouassida, co-managing director of hellofood Egypt.
The Otlob app and online product will receive a facelift to provide a more user-friendly experience, with hellofood saying customers will pay the same amount for food as if they went directly to the restaurant. The company does plans to increase the already comprehensive portfolio of outlets, and serve more cities and cuisine types.
“Otlob’s ongoing success is rooted in its strong relationships with restaurant partners, which has led to thousands of orders per day across hundreds of outlets. This acquisition will help Otlob to grow faster and bring in further know-how to help deliver an incredible product,” said Walid El-Saadany, Otlob managing director.
Fadi Antaki, chief executive officer (CEO) of A15, said his company was very proud of Otlob’s turnaround story and expedited growth over the last two years.
“Seeing the great potential of the platform, we have allocated considerable focus and investment into Otlob through our Catalyst Acceleration Programme, leading to a three-times increase in orders and substantial revenue growth. This achievement couldn’t have been accomplished without the right passionate and dedicated team at Otlob,” Antaki said.
hellofood is just the latest owner of Otlob, founded by Ayman Rashed on 1999. ITWorx, LinkDotNet and Accelero Capital were all previous owner of the company, which had first mover advantage in the online food ordering market.
