Grubhub Says Goodbye to 500 Employees
Papa John's poor Q4, Deliveroo introduces bathtub dining, Amazon vs. Walmart
Oof, looks like we’re ending the week on a sour note, with many at Grubhub sadly losing their jobs and Papa John’s greasy results looking rather indigestible. But at least Deliveroo has a new marketing stunt to put a smile on your face!
This week’s edition is brought to you by Gridwise.
Today:
Wonder Cuts Grubhub’s Headcount
It’s No Pizza Party for Poor Papa John’s
Chart Time | Amazon vs. Walmart
Deliveroo’s Doused Dining Stunt
3PD | Grubhub Cuts 20% of Staff As Wonder Integration Looms
Our hearts go out to employees at Grubhub, many of whom lost their jobs this morning. Grubhub CEO Howard Migdal writes:
Hi everyone,
Over the past two years, we’ve made tremendous progress on our journey to accelerate growth through clear focus and a well-defined strategy. We’ve strengthened our foundation across our core business and new verticals to transform our value proposition to customers and set ourselves up for future success. Teaming up with Wonder has been a remarkable testament to our progress over the past year, connecting us with a partner who embodies our innovative, entrepreneurial, and competitive spirit and is committed to Grubhub’s success.
Since we closed the transaction with Wonder, we have been aligning on how our businesses work together to achieve our ambitious mission of becoming the primary destination for mealtime.
In order to achieve our ambition, we must prioritize the right work and execute with speed and conviction by reducing management layers, bringing leaders closer to the business, and removing duplication.
As a result, we’ve made the difficult decision to eliminate approximately 500 positions at Grubhub. These changes span all teams as we begin to integrate functions with Wonder.
The dedication and talent across our teams is incredible, making this especially tough. Each of you has played a vital role in shaping Grubhub, and we are deeply grateful for your passion and hard work. We’re taking this step because we believe it is essential for the future we’re working so hard to build together with Wonder.
These changes will position Grubhub to maximize our potential, create opportunities for leaders at Wonder and Grubhub to take on expanded roles and responsibilities in support of our shared vision, and enable us to focus our resources on our most important business objectives.
Navigating these changes:
Employees impacted by this decision will be notified in the next few hours.
Our priority is to support you through this transition and treat you with the respect you have earned and deserve. Impacted employees will receive severance and outplacement services to help transition and plan for the future. Your commitment has helped build something extraordinary, and I thank you for all you’ve done for Grubhub.
Leaders will hold team meetings later today with employees who are remaining with Grubhub to discuss what these changes mean for your group. We’ll come together for a town hall in March where we’ll talk more about the path forward and our strategy for 2025.
We recognize that today and over the next few days, it will be important for us to process these changes, reflect on what’s next, and support one another.
Looking ahead, I am confident that, together with Wonder, we are in a strong position to disrupt the restaurant industry and redefine how people think about food delivery. While today is a difficult day, I have no doubt in our future and what we will accomplish together. Thank you for your resilience and commitment to Grubhub.
Howard
The Big Picture: This represents about a 20% nationwide cut for the Chicago-based deliverer, which now counts about 600 folks in the Windy City, down from about twice as many at its peak in 2021. These reductions come as Grubhub’s new owner Wonder is digesting the acquisition, which recently closed for $150M in cash and $500M in assumed debt. Modern Delivery will have more details on that shortly, with an upcoming exclusive interview with Wonder COO Tony Hoggett.
PARTNER | Ride Share and On-Demand Deliveries Changing, Here’s What You Need To Know
Ride Share and On-Demand Deliveries Changing, Here’s What You Need To Know
The rideshare and on-demand delivery landscape is evolving rapidly—with rising costs, shifting consumer behavior, and a surge in retail and grocery delivery redefining how people and goods move. The 2025 Gridwise Annual Gig Mobility Report reveals key insights for restaurants, grocery stores, retailers, mobility firms, and investors.
Rising Costs & Consumer Behavior: Rideshare fares are up 7.2%, and 72.3% of consumers may cut back if prices keep rising.
Delivery Demand Surge: DoorDash retail deliveries up 34.1%, Uber Eats up 46.6%, and Macy’s retail deliveries skyrocketed by 4,500%.
Driver Earnings Under Pressure: Uber drivers are down 4% at $23.33/hr, and Lyft drivers are down 6% at $23.23/hr.
The Gig Mobility industry is at a turning point.
Get the full report now and discover what’s next for on-demand delivery and rideshare.
FINANCE | Digesting Papa John’s Sloppy 2024
Pizza pusher Papa John’s International just delivered in 2024 financial results, and things aren’t looking too hot for the country’s fourth largest pizza chain. Comparable sales fell 4%, system-wide sells dipped 3% to $4.85B and total revenue fell 4% to $2.06 billion. Net income was down a whopping 43.3% to $14.8M. The company doesn’t seem to have many great ideas about how to restore growth, instead it will focus on “value perception” and switch from national to local advertising; the stock is down 3.5% this week.
The Big Picture: Papa John’s plans to keep growing its store count, opening 112 last year, but that may mean same store sales will keep falling. The papa is looking particularly weak on its delivery game, with CEO Todd Penegor noting “Organic or first-party delivery is where we are seeing the traffic loss,” while carryout is up by low-single digits. The company did note that reduced delivery fees ended up being “relatively profit-neutral.” The Midwestern brand has been on the delivery aggregators for a few years now, meaning that unlike Domino’s, it can’t expect as much new growth from those channels. Perhaps mild tweaks to its loyalty app will bring in fresh dough?
CHART TIME | Amazon Has Fun at Walmart’s Expense
Where do shoppers go for discretionary items like electronics, clothes and home goods? Increasingly, they’ve moved market share away from Walmart and towards Amazon, leaving the Bentonville Big Boxer increasingly reliant on grocery sales as Amazon overtakes it in overall revenue.
MARKETING | Deliveroo Wants You to Dine in the Bath
British 3PD Deliveroo just launched its “Dip & Dine” range of eating-oriented inflatables, tapping into the “banquet bathing” movement that is supposedly all the rage on TikTok these days. In a news release full of stomach-turning statistics, one can learn that pizza (19%), curry (16%) and burgers (5%) are the most beloved bath-time edibles. We’d say be careful with that soggy bun, but evidently 20% of these odd Brits have continued eating their meals after it fell in the tub.
The Big Picture: We’re suckers for a good viral marketing stunt, and that’s one thing Deliveroo can reliably deliver. In recent months, the 3PD has also launched haggis katsu curry, a stealthy Santa, and delivery via efoil surfboard. These stunts aren’t limited to the UK: in France the deliverer debuted a weird Venom-themed cookie, in Hong Kong it’s pushed sweaters for wine bottles and in the UAE it’s even tried delivery by ancient watercraft. All these stunts seem to be paying off, with interim Q4 GTV growth coming in around 7%.
A Few Good Links
DDOT seeks Freight Branch Manager. Jack in the Box net income falls. Founding family’s bid for 7-Eleven fails. Deliveroo and Sheng Siong push fast groceries. CA eyes fast food wage hike. House bill would improve truck parking. Amazon may enter LTL market. Canada & Mexico tariffs go live 3/4. NRS integrates with Google. Wawa enters Midwest. Whole Foods tries for London growth. Weis Markets grows in Q4. Walmart keeps trying to get people to shop in virtual reality. Kroger expands Ocado partnership. Subway knocks footlongs down to $6.99 — remember when they were $5? Waymo hits 200k rides per week. Map and geography disputes the world over. Roundtrip and Call the Car launch Medicaid transport. Archer “Launch Edition” heads to Abu Dhabi. USPS plans new cost reductions, debuts Appalachian Trail stamps — surely these will be collectors’ items after the agency is illegally dismantled…
Got a tip, feedback, or just want to say hi? Reply back to this email.
— Brought to you by the Curbivore Crew.