Aussies mourning the rapid death of Deliveroo were left puzzled this week after spotting riders still zipping around in their high-vis vests and with the food giant’s iconic teal food bags strapped to their back.
Deliveroo on Wednesday announced it had entered voluntary administration and was immediately ceasing operations in Australia with the delivery app going dark at about 5pm.
The shock decision put 14,000 riders and 150 staff out of work and took thousands of restaurants by complete surprise.
Despite the sudden closure, Deliveroo drivers appear to still be a staple across Australia with one Sydneysider sharing photos and video of a rider picking up food at a restaurant in the city’s east.
But there’s a simple explanation for the mystery – with Deliveroo being the only delivery app to give its workers free gear to wear while working.
Delivery customers have noticed Deliveroo equipment is still being used by riders, despite the service closing shop in Australia on Wednesday (pictured, a Deliveroo insulated bag)
Riders currently aren’t considered direct employees of the companies they deliver for so for other apps, including DoorDash, UberEats and MenuLog, they are not required to wear a uniform.
Despite that, most companies offer riders the option to buy branded suitable insulation bags and high visibility clothing at a fair price so they can stay safe on the job.
Deliveroo was the exception, offering a collection of important gear for free upon sign-up and free replacement for damaged items.
A page from Deliveroo Australia’s recently deleted website showed new riders received a free waterproof and reflective jacket, a free thermal bag and a backpack from the company upon sign-up.
Branded equipment, such as an insulated food-safe bag, cost at least $40 from other major delivering services.
UberEats briefly gave riders free high visibility vests in 2021 to boost its road safety during the pandemic but couldn’t compete with Deliveroo’s offer.
Deliveroo’s freebies saw a huge amount of drivers flock to the platform and use its gear over other companies – inflating the workers on the app.
An anonymous former Deliveroo worker said the amount of branded bags and jackets on city streets often led customers to believe there were more company riders in the area than there actually were.
‘There’s a misunderstanding of how many riders they have as so many riders prefer the Roo bags so the streets are lined with teal but they’re often delivering for other platforms’ they said.
The Deliveroo-branded bags and jackets were given to new riders for free but former drivers, like Mr Moor (above), believe it was a marketing ploy
Deliveroo rider Rodrigo Burgos Moor, 33, said the freebies were likely part of a larger advertising scheme.
‘I think it was all a marketing strategy, to fill up the streets with their brand,’ he said.
‘The particular colours of the brand are like an attention caller.
‘For riders, the quality of the materials they used for their gear was much better than other brands.’
Former rider Nabin Adhikari, 25, said another big incentive for people to join Deliveroo was the free and simple sign-up process.
Former Deliveroo riders said the equipment was higher-quality than other services’ and is likely to stay in circulation for a long time to come (pictured, a delivery driver on Friday)
‘Now Menulog is also supporting ex-Deliveroo riders with an easy and fast-tracked application process with a dedicated email support team,’ he said.
Doordash has also offered former Deliveroo riders a quicker way to join and a 25 per cent discount on electric bikes to help draw new workers in.
Deliveroo shared a message on Wednesday to announce it had made the ‘difficult decision’ to leave the Australian market’s ‘challenging economic conditions’.
‘We always aim to deliver the best possible service for our consumers wherever we operate, and if we cannot do that we will be prepared to review our position,’ it said.
‘In Australia, we have concluded that achieving a sustainable position of leadership in the market is not possible without a disproportionate level of investment which would have highly uncertain returns.’
A separate announcement to investors explained that Deliveroo was simply too far behind that market leaders and it would cost too much to catch up.
‘The company has determined that it cannot reach a sustainable and profitable scale in Australia without considerable financial investment,’ it said.
‘The expected return on such investment is not commensurate with Deliveroo’s risk/reward thresholds.’
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