The CEO of $2 billion startup Deliveroo says it isn't for sale

Will Shu

Deliveroo CEO Will Shu built up a $2 billion (£1.5 billion) company because he spent years as a banking analyst in London eating terrible food.
Deliveroo is one of the most successful and highly valued startups in the UK, offering takeaway food from restaurants that don't conventionally do delivery.
There are rumours that the company is in early buyout talks with Uber, and that it held preliminary talks with Amazon last year, but Shu said it is not for sale.
He spoke to Business Insider after being named in the UK Tech 100, a ranking of the 100 coolest people in the UK tech industry.

Deliveroo CEO and cofounder Will Shu spent the mid-2000s being astonished that food delivery in London was so terrible.

An American posted to a banking analyst job in Canary Wharf, Shu found himself suddenly deprived of New York's buzzing takeaway scene and stuck with food-to-go from Tesco and the local Tex-Mex.

Perpetually hungry for better food, he nurtured the idea for a better online takeaway service. His initial iteration, created with a technically minded Connecticut schoolbuddy, Greg Orlowski, didn't go anywhere because smartphones and apps hadn't yet taken off.

The pair eventually launched Deliveroo in 2013, when the rise of smartphones meant communication between a company, restaurants, and a fleet of delivery riders wouldn't be an issue. Deliveroo was an immediate hit and takeaway in Britain suddenly became much more exciting than the local Chinese or pizzeria, with customers able to order from their local boutique cafe or national chains like Nando's without leaving the sofa.

Deliveroo's popularity and growth is why Business Insider has nominated Will Shu to its annual ranking of the 100 coolest people in UK tech this year.

Not everyone loved the concept from the outset. One of Shu's first investors tried to dissuade him from pursuing the idea in 2011, two years before Deliveroo was established.

"I remember how passionate he was to solve this problem," said Hussein Kanji, a partner at Hoxton Ventures. "He was so annoyed that you couldn't get good food in London delivered. I tried to talk him out of it."

Kanji didn't succeed, and Shu and Orlowski began to build Deliveroo. Kanji and his fund partner Rob Kniaz would go on to participate in an early Deliveroo funding round. The company has now raised $859.6 million (£647 million) in total funding from backers including Index Ventures, T. Rowe Price, and Fidelity.

"In those early days, he was driven not necessarily to build a whopping big business, but to solve this problem — I think partially for himself," added Kanji. One of Shu's most impressive traits, he said, was his willingness to understand every aspect of his business, from persuading restaurants onto the platform to going out and doing deliveries.

"That was impressive, he had no problems rolling up his sleeves and working hard," said Kanji. "I remember his first office. It was a council flat with almost no windows, with 20-plus people crammed in there. He was so careful about cost."

Deliveroo is now worth in excess of $2 billion (£1.5 billion). Bloomberg reported in September that the company was considering a buyout offer from Uber, which operates a takeaway rival called Uber Eats, though sources suggest the company wouldn't sell for much less than $6 billion (£4.6 billion). A subsequent story in the The Telegraph reported that Amazon had twice held preliminary talks about acquiring Deliveroo

Business Insider caught up with Will Shu shortly after the buyout rumours broke. Shu wasn't available for an in-person interview, but did reply to questions via email. Here's what he said, edited for for order and clarity:

Business Insider: There are some entertaining anecdotes about Deliveroo's early days, like you delivering pizza to an old banking boss who thought you had fallen on hard times. Has anything funny happened to you more recently?

Will Shu: I have a habit of being dressing casual. Come to our offices in December and I may well be wearing shorts. Maybe it’s an after-effect of wearing a suit for most of my twenties when I worked in banking.

At the Tech for Good Summit, I was so happy to see [French president Emmanuel] Macron say it wasn’t compulsory to wear a suit. So I arrive at the summit, wearing what I consider business casual, some pants and a plain t-shirt, and I'm the only person in a one-mile radius not in a suit. Bet you didn’t even spot me in the press shots? I got ushered into the very back, but no matter it was a great day and President Macron is a great guy.

Here's Shu hiding at the back, while besuited luminaries like Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi are with President Macron in the front.

Business Insider: You used to do some Deliveroo deliveries yourself by bike. Is that still the case?

Will Shu: I don't do this as much as I like, with travel often getting in the way. But I still make deliveries, I try to do a few hours each month. At Deliveroo we're beginning to introduce riding and doing shifts working in restaurants as part of our onboarding process for staff, as we want every staff member to be ingrained into the business understanding the rider, restaurant and customer experience, no matter what their expertise.

Business Insider: What kind of bike do you have or do you borrow?

Will Shu: We have bikes at the office that I tend to borrow. I have a hybrid bike that I bought from Evans for about £150.

On acquisition rumours...

Business Insider: Is Deliveroo for sale?

Will Shu: We are not.

Business Insider Is the company in talks with Uber or any other potential buyer or partner?

Will Shu: So, as a rule, we don't comment on rumours. Deliveroo is the fastest growing company in Europe so people love to chat about us.

Business Insider: You've floated an IPO as one possible outcome in previous interviews with us. What are your views now on a float?

Will Shu: It's not what we are focused on right now.

On the future of the business...

Business Insider: Are you thinking about a US launch in the near future?

Will Shu: We're always looking to grow and expand and the US is already a super competitive market. With so many players vying for consumer attention it'll be interesting to see developments in the next 24 months. The USA is an amazing market though.

Business Insider: Who came up with Deliveroo Editions, and how did that person convince investors and colleagues that 'shipping containers in car parks' was a feasible idea? [Editions are pop-up kitchens from new and existing restaurants that are dedicated to serving Deliveroo orders. Some are in disused car parks and industrial units.]

Will Shu: I came up with the idea with our now COO Rohan Pradhan, back in 2015. The idea was not a hard sell when you can back up the physical elements with Deliveroo’s rich data that shows hows consumer demand will ensure a high likelihood of success. We’ve moved on from shipping containers to permanent bricks and mortar sites. You only have to visit one of these super kitchens and meet the chefs who work in them to understand why the concept works.

Business Insider: What's the end goal for Editions? I understand it's to drive down restaurant costs, and ultimately takeaway prices.

Will Shu: The end goal for Editions is to create amazing food choices for our consumers at faster delivery times; in addition, the margin structure (no front of house, and extremely low rent for partners) can also support lower prices over time.

That's why restaurants choose to work with us exclusively, because they see us as their partner in food delivery — not just a mechanism for getting their dishes into customers’ hands. It's also about putting us at the heart of the business journey of new restaurants, where they go from from startup to established brands, helping them take the next big step expanding.

Business Insider: I understand Deliveroo's bigger ambition is to kill home cooking.

Will Shu: We want to feed people three times a day. Our ambition is to become the definitive food brand, that means transcending customer perceptions from just a food delivery company. As we grow we’re focusing on combining innovation with our world-leading technology to ensure when people think about food they think about Deliveroo.

On company culture and switching off...

Business Insider: How often do you sit in on interviews for new candidates at Deliveroo, and what's the one weird question you ask?

Will Shu: Not as often as I like, but I do get to meet one of two candidates a week. Perhaps not surprising but I’ll ask what their favourite restaurant is and then what their favourite restaurant on Deliveroo is.

Business Insider: Are there founders, investors, or other figures who you look to for support?

Will Shu: I speak to other founders/CEOs in the States and here for support. One particular person I spend a lot [of time] with is Darrell Cavens, who is on our board. He is the founder of Zulily and Blue Nile.

Business Insider: How did it personally feel, being the poster child for the gig economy and all its attendant problems?

Will Shu: I'm actually really proud of offering riders what they want. We create flexible, well-paid work and we listen to them about the changes they want to see. We've led the way in offering increased benefits and security like this year’s insurance package. Riding with Deliveroo is popular and when I chat to real riders directly I find it invaluable. I can’t change headlines, but getting under the skin of what riders want is what really counts and what really makes a difference.

We're trying to do what is best for our riders, our riders are earning £10 per hour [$12.99] on average. We also were the first company to roll out globally free rider insurance, offer education courses. We know from extensive research and speaking directly that our riders value flexibility more than anything else, we’re committed to giving them what they want.

Business Insider: What do you do to chill when you don't want to think about being in charge of a $2 billion-plus company?

Will Shu: Walking, people laugh at me for this but I love visiting towns across the UK and just walking around. It's a great way to clear your mind!

Business Insider: Is it really true you only know how to cook an omelette?

Will Shu: I know this sounds made-up, for storytelling purposes, but I love food even if I’m truly a pretty terrible cook — I guess I’m very on brand. My saving grace is the humble omelette. As someone who can’t cook, I started Deliveroo because I wanted takeout options that weren’t just curries and kebabs. Since then Deliveroo has grown up quite a lot. This year we launched Marketplace+ to incorporate those traditional takeaway joints on Deliveroo. Who are we to tell you that the kebab you love isn’t good — we want to become the definitive food brand and that means giving you what you want, when you want it.

Business Insider: How often do you eat takeout, and how often is it ordered through Deliveroo?

Will Shu: I’ll order Deliveroo about three times a day, often testing out our new restaurants on our staff members and asking for their feedback. I also try out other services, it's really important to take note of what your competitors are doing well but I've learnt that if you just focus on them then you lose your winning edge.

Business Insider: Wikipedia says you're single. Is that true?

Will Shu: This is getting kinda personal. I'm gonna revert to Deliveroo's rules — we don't comment on rumours Shona.

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