Deliveroo PLC (LSE:ROO)'s share price got a lift this morning after it said it boosted turnover by 12% in the first half to over £1bn, as orders on its platform grew 10% and the volume of transactions rose 7%.
Positive growth in food delivery orders follows a troubled year for the company, in which it faced off with the unions, lost a driver in a fatal stabbing, and widened its pre-tax losses.
The food delivery company came to an agreement with the GMB Union to recognise Deliveroo riders as self-employed and is expanding grocery delivery services apace with supermarkets such as Waitrose, Sainsbury’s, Co-Op and Asda.
Growth was the strongest in the UK and Ireland, where transactions rose 8% to £1.9bn, while global orders increased 6% to £1.6bn, together totalling nearly £3.6bn.
However, the pace of growth in orders slowed in the second quarter, to 2% year over year, compared to a rocketing first quarter in which its orders rose by 12%.
Deliveroo’s pre-tax loss deepened to £147mln in the first six months of 2022, compared to £95mln in the same part of 2021, despite narrowing sequentially, adding to the company’s recent woes.
Simon Wolfson, a member of the House of Lords, resigned from Deliveroo’s board of directors with immediate effect, saying the role was “no longer compatible” with his other commitments.
He will step down immediately, Deliveroo said in a statement today, after joining the board 18 months ago.
Deliveroo chair Claudia Arney said he had helped the company navigate an “unprecedented trading environment” during its first year as a public company.
His resignation comes after reports yesterday that a court heard a Deliveroo driver had been stabbed to death in an incident of road rage in north London.
Will Shu, founder and chief executive of Deliveroo, said: "In March we set out our path to profitability and the levers to deliver this. So far in 2022, we have made good progress delivering on our profitability plan, despite increased consumer headwinds and slowing growth during the period.”
Deliveroo said its guidance for the full year remains unchanged, with transaction growth this year expected to fall between 4% and 12%, on a negative adjusted underlying earnings margin of 1.5% to 1.8%.
Its share price climbed 3.05% by 09:12 this morning.