Talabat
{{Short description|Kuwaiti food and grocery delivery company}}
{{advert|date=November 2019}}
{{Infobox dot-com company
| name = Talabat
| logo = Talabat logo.svg
| logo_size = 175px
| type = E-commerce
| traded_as =
| foundation = {{Start date|2004}}
| dissolved =
| founder = Abdulaziz Al Loughani
| CEO = Tomaso Rodriguez
| industry = Internet
| products =
| services = Online food ordering, Food delivery
| revenue =
| operating_income =
| net_income =
| assets =
| equity =
| area_served = {{Unbulleted list|Kuwait|Saudi Arabia|Bahrain|United Arab Emirates|Oman|Qatar|Jordan|Egypt|Iraq}}
| owner = Delivery Hero AG
| num_employees = >16,000
| parent =
| divisions =
| subsid =
| website = {{URL|https://www.talabat.com/}}
| intl = no
}}
Talabat (Arabic: {{lang|ar|طلبات}}, Ṭalabāt) is an online food ordering company founded in Kuwait in 2004. {{As of|April 2021|post=,}} Talabat operates in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar, Jordan, Egypt, and Iraq. A subsidiary of Delivery Hero since 2016, Talabat has grown to become the leading online food ordering company in the Middle East.
Talabat no longer operates in Saudi Arabia, and directs the user to HungerStation.
History
In 2004, Talabat General Trading and Contracting Company was founded in Kuwait.{{cite web|title=Lets Talk Business|url= https://www.e-gulfbank.com/en/about-us/media/press-releases/2022/06/lets-talk-business-highlights-khaled-al-otaibis-entrepreneurial-journey/ |website=GulfBank|language=en}} The name "Talabat" derives from the Arabic language and it means "orders" or "requests".{{cite news |title=Development Cost Of A Food Delivery App Like Talabat |url=https://www.royex.ae/blog/development-cost-of-a-food-delivery-app-like-talabat |work=www.royex.ae |language=en}}
As Talabat’s popularity grew locally, it won the "Best E-Business Award"{{cite web |last1=Devadiga |first1=Kirti |title=Best E-Business Award Archives |url=https://blog.loudbol.com/tag/best-e-business-award/ |website=LoudBol |date=7 February 2023}}{{Cite web|title=How did Kuwait produce some of the Middle East's largest exits?|url=https://www.wamda.com/2019/02/kuwait-produce-middle-east-largest-exits|access-date=2020-12-15|website=Wamda|language=en}} repeatedly in 2008 and 2009 with special recognition from the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.{{cite web |last1=Devadiga |first1=Kirti |title=receiving special appreciation from Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah Archives |url=https://blog.loudbol.com/tag/receiving-special-appreciation-from-sheikh-sabah-al-ahmad-al-jaber-al-sabah/ |website=LoudBol |date=7 February 2023}}
In 2009, the business was operating out of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia with an average of 1,250 daily transactions. Talabat then underwent key changes such as the re-branding from 6alabat.com to Talabat.com, a shift from a hybrid form of Arabic and English spelling to a pure English spelling.{{cite news |last=Kadhem |first=Masooma |title=Disrupting An Industry In Five Steps – The Talabat Way – StartUp Bahrain |url=https://startupbahrain.com/features/disrupting-an-industry-in-five-steps-the-talabat-way/}}
In 2011, a revamp of the platform took place with a new website layout and improvement in user interface.
In 2012, Talabat expanded to Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, and Oman.{{cite news |last1=Kamel |first1=Deena |title=Food delivery service Talabat to expand UAE operations |url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/2021/07/13/food-delivery-service-talabat-to-expand-uae-operations/ |work=The National |date=12 July 2021 |language=en}}
In 2013, it continued its expansion to Qatar.{{cite news |last1=Alagos |first1=Peter |title=talabat plays key role in regional expansion of ‘Made in Qatar’ brand |url=https://www.gulf-times.com/story/719420/talabat-plays-key-role-in-regional-expansion-of-made-in-qatar-brand |work=Gulf Times |date=18 June 2022 |language=en}}
In 2015, Talabat was acquired by the global German e-commerce group Rocket Internet for US$170 million.{{Hair space}}{{Cite web|title=Rocket Internet acquires Kuwait's Talabat for $170M, largest MENA tech acquisition since Maktoob|url=https://www.wamda.com/2015/02/rocket-internet-acquires-kuwaits-talabat-for-170m-largest-mena-tech-acquisition-since-maktoob|access-date=2020-07-25|website=Wamda|language=en}} It became part of Rocket Internet's business unit Global Online Takeaway Group.{{Cite web|title=Rocket Internet's Food Group Eats Up Talabat For $170M And 24h In The Middle East|url=https://techcrunch.com/2015/02/11/rocket-internet-food-panda-talabat/|access-date=2020-07-25|website=TechCrunch|date=11 February 2015 |language=en-US}}
In 2016, Rocket Internet's food delivery business, including Talabat, was taken over by online food marketplace Delivery Hero.{{Cite web|date=2019-04-25|title=Delivery Hero's Kuwait 2018 revenue surges twofold to $110 million, Saudi grows 87% to $103 million|url=https://www.menabytes.com/delivery-hero-kuwait-saudi-2018/|access-date=2020-07-25|website=MENAbytes|language=en-US}} In line with this acquisition, Abdulhamid Alomar took over as the CEO of the company.{{cite web |title=Food on-demand: In conversation with Talabat.com |url=https://www.sme10x.com/featured/talabat-com |website=www.sme10x.com |language=en}}
In 2017, Talabat expanded its operations to Jordan.{{cite news |title=Talabat Jordan expands operations to cover entire Kingdom |url=https://www.zawya.com/en/press-release/talabat-jordan-expands-operations-to-cover-entire-kingdom-tvgh85s5 |work=www.zawya.com |language=en}}
In 2019, former Grab executive Tomaso Rodriguez was appointed as CEO, after the stepping down of Abdulhamid Alomar.{{Hair space}}{{Cite web|date=2019-09-29|title=Delivery Hero's Talabat appoints former Grab executive Tomaso Rodriguez as CEO|url=https://www.menabytes.com/talabat-tomaso-rodriguez/|access-date=2020-07-25|website=MENAbytes|language=en-US}}
Lawsuits were filed against the company after they were found violating fair competition rules in Kuwait. A settlement plea made by Talabat was also turned down.{{Hsp}}{{Cite web|date=2019-11-16|title=Settlement offer from Talabat and Carriage refused|url=https://www.arabtimesonline.com/news/settlement-offer-from-talabat-and-carriage-refused/|access-date=2020-07-25|website=Arab Times Online|language=en-US}}
In January 2020, the food delivery company Carriage,{{cite web |title=Delivery Hero announces acquisition of Middle Eastern delivery service Carriage {{!}} Delivery Hero |url=https://www.deliveryhero.com/newsroom/delivery-hero-announces-acquisition-of-middle-eastern-delivery-service-carriage/ |website=www.deliveryhero.com |language=en}} also owned by Delivery Hero, was absorbed by Talabat.{{Hair space}}{{Cite web|date=2020-01-22|title=Delivery Hero's Talabat absorbs Carriage's operations across the region|url=https://www.menabytes.com/delivery-hero-consolidation-gcc/|access-date=2020-07-25|website=MENAbytes|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|date=2017-09-27|title=EXCLUSIVE: Kuwaiti food delivery startup Carriage was acquired for ~$100 million by Delivery Hero|url=https://www.menabytes.com/carriage-100-million/|access-date=2020-12-15|website=MENAbytes|language=en-US}}
In August 2020, it has been confirmed that the Egyptian food delivery service Otlob, which was in operation since 1999 and became a Delivery Hero subsidiary in 2016, is getting rebranded as Talabat. As of September 2020, Talabat operates in Egypt.{{Cite web|date=2020-08-05|title=Delivery Hero is rebranding Otlob to Talabat, plans to create 50,000 freelance rider jobs in Egypt|url=https://www.menabytes.com/talabat-otlob-rebrand/|access-date=2020-08-27|first=Zubair Naeem|last=Paracha|website=MENAbytes|language=en-US}}
In October 2020, Talabat announced they will expand into Iraq in early 2021, initially operating in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan before gradually expanding into more cities in the rest of the country.{{Cite web|date=2020-10-15 |title=Talabat to launch operations in Iraq |url=https://gulfbusiness.com/talabat-to-launch-operations-in-iraq/ |access-date=2021-10-03 |first=Zainab |last=Mansoor |website=Gulf Business}}
In December 2020, Talabat and Huawei signed a partnership to list Talabat App in the Huawei marketplace.{{Cite web|last=البيان|first=دبي-|title=طلبات ينضم إلى متجر هواوي للتطبيقات في الإمارات - الاقتصادي - السوق المحلي - البيان|url=https://www.albayan.ae/economy/local-market/2020-12-27-1.4050538|access-date=2021-01-04|website=www.albayan.ae|language=ar}}
In August 2021, Talabat was selected as the official food delivery provider for Expo 2020, and their pavilion would display technological innovations for food delivery, such the cloud kitchen concept, whilst representing multiple food brands.{{Cite web|date=2021-08-16 |title=Talabat selected as official food delivery provider for Expo 2020 Dubai |url=https://www.arabianbusiness.com/news/467170-talabat-selected-as-official-food-delivery-provider-for-expo-2020-dubai |access-date=2021-10-04 |website=Arabian Business}} In September 2021, Talabat partnered with Terminus Group, who is also an official premier partner for Expo 2020, to launch ten autonomous, last mile food-delivery robots for Expo visitors.{{Cite web|date=2021-09-29 |title=Talabat Partners with Terminus Group to Launch Sustainable Last-Mile Delivery with Fully Autonomous Food Delivery Robots at Expo 2020 Dubai |url=https://apnews.com/press-release/Accesswire/business-technology-middle-east-dubai-fc03e3ce395e64ac06aa46c0b6a109d8 |access-date=2021-10-04 |website=Associated Press}} Expo 2020 itself launched on 1 October 2021 following a year-long delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic.{{cite news |title=Dubai Expo 2020 postponed to October 1, 2021 |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/expo-dubai-opening-ceremony-pandemic-1.6195443 |work=cbc.ca}}