Deliveroo has seen some recovery in consumer confidence, alongside a heightened focus on value from across different consumer segments.
Carlo Mocci, chief business officer for Europe, tells MCA the delivery platform has pushed ahead with its Value Programme, introduced in November 2023, thereby devoting attention on current priorities for consumers.
“We’re not seeing a complete rebound in consumer confidence,” he explains. “I still think there’s some tension around price rises.
”We have been focused on driving value, but there’s also been a rise in consumer confidence, so it’s hard to unpick.”
The Value Programme helps consumers find restaurants that offer the best value for money. While Mocci acknowledges consumers may have varying definitions of value, Deliveroo defines the idea as “great food, service, and quality” at a fair price.
Restaurant partners are rewarded for price integrity – i.e. no or low markups vs in-store pricing – and high quality delivery service with greater in-app visibility. These brands are labelled with the ‘Deliveroo’s Choice’ badge in-app, and have seen increased traffic and sales, plus new customer acquisition, according to the company.
The number of orders from restaurants scored ‘good’ or ‘great’ has more than doubled since the launch of the programme.
“Consumers are noticing and becoming more loyal to these restaurants,” Mocci continues. “Even our founder Will Shu, who’s something of an encyclopaedia of London restaurants, discovered ones he didn’t know.
“We have over 1,000 restaurants in every London neighbourhood – these are the best ones.”
Ultimately, the goal is to incentivise repeat and augment consumer trust, which is hard to build but easy to lose, Mocci admits. Spend is determined by many factors – of which one of the most important is weather – but driving loyalty is key.
“There’s been some average basket size growth, but that’s partly inflation. The essence of the marketplace is about driving retention and frequency.”
The Plus Diamond programme, still in its infancy, is an invite-only offer launched in May this year. Targeting heavy users, the new programme is priced at £19.99 per month and offers benefits such as a dedicated customer service team, free priority delivery, and a refund of the entire order value in case of delays.
Members-only experiences, events, and exclusive restaurants round off the list.
“It’s those customers that would naturally be interested in events and discoveries,” says Mocci, explaining how the programme leverages behavioural insights.
Moreover, a revamp of the Plus Gold loyalty programme now offers consumers a £5 credit in case of delays and 10% credit back on orders over £30.
“This incentivises loyalty, with people able to use the credit for grocery orders as well.”
While Deliveroo has always focused on exclusive partnerships, it has recruited over 150 new exclusive restaurants in the UK and Ireland in 2023, while renewing contracts as well. New partnerships include London-based food-to-go concept Pure and Roman-style pizza group Basilico.
Other brands exclusive to Deliveroo include Wagamama, Gail’s, Wingstop, Nando’s, Wahaca, Pizza Pilgrims, Shake Shack, Farmer J, and Sticks’n’Sushi.
“It benefits us because these restaurants tend to have the highest quality scores, with optimised delivery models and menus. They get more attention from us as well.”
In terms of trends, the chicken category, fusion concepts, and Hawaiian-inspired poke brands are all seeing significant traction, while stalwarts like salads and pizza remain strong.
“Chicken has seen a complexification over the past few years,” Mocci says. “The poke trend has been there for a while but we’re seeing an acceleration. It’s healthy, fresh, suited for summer, convenient for lunch, and can’t be made at home.”
When it comes to other trends across the industry, he’s less fussed about AI, which has been at the heart of what Deliveroo does for years.
“It’s at the core of our tech…it’s impossible to run the rider network without it.
“We think about how we can use it to solve a problem – that’s our approach. It is one weapon in our arsenal, but we don’t try to force it where it’s not needed.”
Looking ahead, Mocci is keen to drive growth in markets across Europe, particularly France and Italy.
Within the UK, retail is emerging even as grocery continues to grow. Deliveroo looks to build customer awareness and eventually habit around some of the newer offerings on the platform.
“It’s an opportunity to engage with customers more and link them to other missions.”
