Food delivery startup Deliveroo launches in third Australian city
After testing the waters in Sydney and Melbourne, UK-based food delivery startup Deliveroo has decided people in Brisbane should also have the right to order fancy burgers on an app.
Not all Brisbane locals will immediately be able to use the service, which launched in the city Tuesday. Deliveroo, which partners with premium restaurants to deliver food ordered online or on its app, will initially only service the CBD, Fortitude Valley, New Farm, Teneriffe and Spring Hill.
It's getting things started with 50 restaurants including Jamie's Italian, Kwan Brothers and Buffalo Bar.
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The company said in an emailed statement it had grown 30 percent week-on-week in Melbourne and Sydney, partnering with more than 600 restaurants in the two cities since opening in November 2015.
Further Australian cities may also find Deliveroo popping up. "Given the impressive growth the company has seen over the past six months since launching in Australia, Deliveroo are looking forward to rolling out it's service across more Australian cities very soon and will announce which locations will be next as soon as these are confirmed," Levi Aron, country manager for Deliveroo, told Mashable Australia over email.
Its Australian rollout has not gone entirely smoothly. In March, the startup, along with fellow delivery service Foodora, faced claims in Fairfax Media it was underpaying its bicycle couriers. In some cases awarding its riders, who are employed as contractors and not employees, only A$10 per delivery.
Deliveroo confirmed the rate to Mashable Australia at the time, saying it was "currently trialling a 'drop only' rate of $10 with a small test amount of freelance drivers." It claimed Deliveroo riders typically earn an average of A$18-$21 an hour.
"We pride ourselves on being premium in every way including harnessing technology in the food space like never before, restaurant selection, consumer experience and customer service," Aron said in the statement Tuesday. "It's through proprietary algorithms, customer care and portfolio of premium restaurants that set us apart."
Whether Brisbane diners, and the couriers the company relies on, also consider the service premium remains to be seen.
UPDATE: April 12, 2016, 2:05 p.m. AEST with additional Deliveroo statement.
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Ariel Bogle was an associate editor with Mashable in Australia covering technology. Previously, Ariel was associate editor at Future Tense in Washington DC, an editorial initiative between Slate and New America.
