By the end of 2023, food pandering businesses in Bangladesh have incurred a loss of over Tk 1,000 crore. This information has emerged in the latest financial statements of Foodpander's German-based parent company.

Delivery Hero, the parent company of app-based food delivery platform Foodpanda and its on-demand grocery delivery platform Pandamart, said that the accumulated losses of its three Bangladeshi establishments at the end of 2023 stood at 86.22 million euros, which is equivalent to about 1,130 crore rupees. Out of the total losses, Foodpanda Bangladesh Limited has posted the highest loss of 69.5 million Euros.

Foodpanda Bangladesh has been making losses since 2016. Delivery Hero Stores (Bangladesh) Limited, operator of Pandamart, posted the second highest loss. Delivery Hero Stores posted losses of more than 15 million euros in four years. And cloud kitchen operator DH Kitchens (Bangladesh) Ltd posted a net loss of EUR 1.54 million over four years. After the start of the Ukraine war, Foodpanda's parent company announced that it was prioritizing profits rather than expanding the business at high costs. As a reflection, all three companies managed to reduce losses last year.

But none of the companies could make a net profit. Foodpanda Bangladesh declined to comment when contacted by The Business Standard on Thursday (April 25). The food delivery company has managed to reduce its annual net loss to 10.13 million euros in 2023 with contractionary measures such as cutting office space and staff. In 2022, the company posted a record net loss of 18.29 million euros. Foodpanda launched an app-based food delivery service in Bangladesh in 2013. In 2016, Delivery Hero acquired Foodpanda along with other subsidiaries around the world.

Daily orders on Foodpanda increased rapidly before and during the pandemic due to extensive marketing activities and discounts. Foodpanda's daily deliveries have increased during the pandemic. The company delivered more than 1.3 lakh orders daily. At the same time the company has expanded its services to 64 districts of Bangladesh. However, the Russia-Ukraine war caused inflation. As consumers cut budgets, companies also cut back on subsidized business expansion. As a result, the food delivery market has fallen into recession. Other food delivery platforms such as Uber Eats, Alibaba Group's Hungry Nakki and locally established Sahaj Food have exited the market due to fierce competition and lack of profit margins.

Foodpanda remains in the market to compete with just send. According to industry sources, around 1 lakh online food orders are currently being delivered. Foodpanda has retained its top position in the Bangladeshi market. Foodpanda has also expanded its on-demand grocery delivery platform Pandamart in the capital over the past four years.