SoftBank-backed DoorDash enters Japan (updated)
09/06/2021 05:56
(Adds quote, details of pandemic business; paragraphs 3,5-7)
TOKYO, June 9 (Reuters) - U.S. food delivery firm DoorDash
Inc DASH.N , which is backed by SoftBank Group Corp 9984.T ,
announced the launch of services in Japan on Wednesday, joining
an increasingly crowded market that has grown during the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Services will be initially limited to the city of Sendai in
Miyagi prefecture, the money losing delivery firm told
reporters, in a step that follows its expansion to Canada and
Australia.
"Our strategy has always been to empower local economies,
especially in the suburban markets that are historically
underserved, yet the appetite for connectivity between merchants
and customers is high," Chief Executive Tony Xu said in a
statement.
SoftBank already backs some of the largest delivery services
in Japan, such as Uber Eats from Uber Technologies Inc UBER.N
and Demae-can Co Ltd 2484.T .
Last month, DoorDash raised its forecast for annual gross
order value, as stimulus checks helped keep food delivery demand
resilient in the first quarter, even as vaccinations and an
easing of curbs encouraged dining-out again. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2N048Y
DoorDash, which has also branched out into delivery from
grocery and convenience stores last year, reported a near
three-fold jump in quarterly revenue to $1.08 billion.
The company has seen a surge in order volumes during the
pandemic as consumers hesitant to step out order essential items
by telephone.
(Reporting by Sam Nussey in Tokya and Kanishka Singh in
Bengaluru; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
((sam.nussey@tr.com; https://twitter.com/SamNusseyRTRS;
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