Just Eat Takeaway sells Grubhub for $650M, just 3 years after buying it for $7.3B

recent YORK — European food delivery giant Just Eat Takeaway.com is selling Grubhub for $650 million, a fraction of the billions it spent to buy the U.S. platform just three years ago.

Wonder throng, a recent York-based food ordering business that touts “quick fine” dining, is set to be Grubhub’s recent owner. Under terms of the deal, announced Wednesday, Wonder will acquire Grubhub from Just Eat Takeaway.com for $150 million in liquid assets and $500 million in elder notes.

That’s far less than than the pricetag on Grubhub’s last sale. Back in 2020, during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic and a surge in demand for takeout meals, Just Eat agreed to buy Grubhub for $7.3 billion — reportedly beating Uber to a combination — in a trade that was later finalized in 2021.

Amsterdam-based Just Eat Takeaway.com acknowledged Wednesday that it had been “actively exploring” the partial or packed sale of Grubhub for some period, citing prior announcements from the business. Just Eat Takeaway.com added that selling Grubhub to Wonder would boost growth, liquid assets production and back property in countries where it “has the greatest competitive advantage.” Beyond the U.S. the business currently operates in 18 other countries.

The trade is expected to close during the first quarter of 2025, subject to regulatory approval and other customary conditions. When completed, Just Eat Takeaway.com says it will retain no material liabilities related to Grubhub.

“This deal delivers the correct home for Grubhub and its employees,” Just Eat Takeaway.com CEO Jitse Groen said in a statement. Shares of the business were up over 15% by midday Wednesday.

The CEOs of Wonder and Grubhub, Marc Lore and Howard Migdal, also sounded positive notes Wednesday — with both noting that the deal would aid Wonder’s mission to “make great food more accessible” and enhance customer experiences.

Wonder, founded by Lore, bills itself as a “recent benevolent of food hall” and delivers made-to-order meals from well-known chefs and restaurants. The recent York enterprise was once known for its fleet of delivery trucks, but later transitioned to a more of brick-and-mortar way. Its online offerings have also grown. Last year, Wonder purchased meal kit business Blue Apron for $103 million.

Grubhub, headquartered in Chicago, operates in more than 4,000 U.S. cities — with over 375,000 merchants and 200,000 delivery partners across the country to date. According to Just Eat, the platform generated 237 million orders with a gross trade worth of 8.06 million euros (about $8.53 million) last year.

Takeaway.com, which merged with Just Eat in 2020, and Grubhub were both founded in the early 2000s — making them some of the earliest entries in the sector. But competition rapidly increased as now-popular platforms like Uber Eats and DoorDash also joined the game. And customers jumping between apps can make it challenging to keep sales stable.

As of March 2024, numbers from data analytics firm Bloomberg Second assess showed that Grubhub made up only 8% of meal delivery buyer spending in the U.S. — far less than DoorDash or Uber Eats. DoorDash is currently winning the “food delivery war,” per Second assess, making up 67% of these sales, followed by Uber Eats’ 23%.