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Image credits: Getir

With June 2021 coming to an end, the first half of 2021 is officially over. And Getir, a Turkish online grocery delivery company, is having a phenomenal year already. 

Earlier this year, the company raised $128M (approx €108M) from investors including, billionaire Michael Moritz, made its debut in London and Amsterdam, Berlin, and Paris, raised $550M (approx €465M), tripling its valuation to over $7.5B (approx €6.3B) last month. 

🏆 Future Hamburg Award winners!

Recently, the winners of the 2021 Future Hamburg Award were announced.

Recently, the winners of the 2021 Future Hamburg Award were announced. Show Less

First acquisition

And now, Getir made its first acquisition. Recently, the Istanbul-based company has announced the acquisition of the online grocery startup BLOK to cement its position in the European market. The company didn’t disclose the exact figures. 

Founded by Vishal Verma, Hunab Moreno, and Varun Kapoor in 2021, Blok (previously Huvi Technologies) is a new instant delivery startup based in Barcelona. 

The company is active in Spain and Italy, with the big markets being Barcelona, Madrid, and Milan. Post the acquisition, Getir will get immediate access into Spain and Italy, with Portugal soon to follow. As a part of the deal, 120 employees from Blok will now work for Getir.

“We are very excited to join hands with the pioneers of ultrafast delivery on our shared goal to lead the on-demand grocery market in Southern Europe. This acquisition allows us to leverage Getir’s deep industry know-how, relationships, and technology while combining that with our world-class team and execution capabilities to create a formidable leader in this part of the world. We’ve had a great response from all our launches in Spain and Italy and can’t wait to double down on our efforts alongside Getir,” comments Vishal Verma, co-founder of BLOK.

10-minutes delivery

Founded in 2015 by Nazim Salur, Serkan Borancili, and Tuncay Tutek, the Turkish company delivers groceries and corner shop items to customers within 10 minutes of placing the orders. 

Keeping up the momentum, the company is gearing up to launch across several cities within the US by the end of the year. In the US, the company will compete against GoPuff, which promises to deliver the retail items in 30 minutes or less. 

Raised $1B

The online grocery company has so far raised around $1B (approx €845M) from various investors including Tiger Global, Sequoia Capital, Silver Lake, DisruptAD, Mubadala Investment Company, and more. 

“The entrepreneurial team at BLOK will add to Getir’s unrivalled experience, further establishing it as the benchmark brand in the global on-demand delivery space,” says the release. 

Currently, the company is now operating in 33 cities in Turkey and also has also associated businesses – GetirFood, GetirMore, GetirWater, and GetirLocals.

“As a business, we have always strived to work with the people and to innovate what we do to make the market a stronger and more successful place. Bringing in BLOK, which has had a monumental year since launching in February, is an exciting opportunity and one that complements our business approach and belief that speed is our currency. BLOK is our first acquisition and we wanted to make sure that whoever we brought on board was the right cultural and ethical fit for Getir” says Nazim Salur, founder of Getir. 

“We strongly believe that BLOK, with their local knowledge and ongoing success in Spain and Italy, will allow us to become a part of these local communities and ensure best-in-class service across Southern Europe,” he adds.