During the recent pandemic, delivery apps and services like DoorDash, UberEats, and Jokr were the lifeline for many. They ensured that their customers’ needs would be met even when others could not get out there into public spaces for meals and groceries. Despite the pandemic slowly smoothing down, people continued to rely on their services. However, Joker recently revealed it would be pulling the plug on U.S. operations.
The company’s executives have made a decision that will likely be profitable for them. They are shifting their focus to Latin America markets while Boston and New York City are getting cut off from the market.
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“We have decided to stop our business activities in the U.S. for now, which have lately only accounted for about 5% of our business,” said Chief Executive Ralf Wenzel on Wednesday. “Latin America is particularly underpenetrated and underserved, that’s why Jokr has put its focus and emphasis on the Latin American opportunity since the beginning.”
Jokr announced that they will be closing nine fulfillment centers, which would leave them with 190 branches worldwide. Additionally the company revealed plans to cut 50 workers from its global workforce accounting for only 5% of all employees.
The Jokr website shared that they have a base in New York along with the Luxemburg headquarters. Bloomberg reported that despite the halt to serving customers, some employees would still be retained from the New York base.
Jokr is still delivering in some parts of Latin America and South American countries, but in a previous report it was said that operations had come to an end in Europe.
TechCrunch reported in March that the company was able to raise $269 million in Series B funding at a $1.2 billion valuation.
Jokr is always looking for ways to make their app better and more useful. Recently, they offered advertising through the delivery bags of drivers as well.
Grocery delivery services have been struggling with the economics of their model. A report estimated that on-demand drivers lost as much at $20 per order, which made it difficult for them to cover costs and make a profit in some cases.
