An Analysis Of Just Eat's Business Model by Cormac Sheedy

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Eat is a “world leader” in its market according to crunchbase.com. However, Delivery Hero is perhaps the true world market leader; operating in 23 countries with over 75,000 partner restaurants (compared to Just Eat who operate in 13 countries with roughly 29,000 partner restaurants). Nevertheless, Just Eat is valued significantly higher than Delivery Hero (more in my “Notes on Funding”). Notes on Origins The original incarnation of Just Eat and its start-up competitor FoodZoom each essentially developed the same business model independently. When both parties learned of each other’s existence, they determined that the Danish market was not suitable to sustain the existence of two competing online takeaway brokers (even despite Denmark’s sizable population of roughly 5.6million people)*. This is why the two companies decided to merge. *This notion; that there is only room for one online takeaway broker, even within a market with a population of over 5million people, is connected to an important element of Just Eat’s business model (this point is expanded in my “Notes on Business Model”). Notes on Funding When Just Eat was floated on the London Stock Exchange in April 2014, its IPO was priced at 260p per share, which gave Just Eat a market capitalization of about $2.44 billion (£1.47 billion). Just Eat’s primary market rival, Delivery Hero (a private company), has only recently achieved a valuation of around $1billion as of August 2014 (after their acquisition of Pizza.de). Notes on Business Model - Although Just Eat does charge a subscription fee for takeaways to sign-up to its service, and although Just Eat sells takeaway supplies, the revenue generated from these activities is miniscule compared to the money Just Eat makes from the ~11% commission charged on sales made through its online brokerage service. - In order to gain critical mass in new markets, the subscription fees may be waved in order to entice takeaway/restaurant owners to sign-up. - As an online broker which serves the purpose of facilitating & arranging transactions between consumers and takeaways, Just Eat strives to act as a universal takeaway directory. As such, Just

Eat needs to offer a very wide selection of different takeaway options in as many areas as possible. If this product offering was limited, then the Just Eat service would not have a powerful value proposition, as consumers would not always be able to find the specific takeaway that they wanted and would instead be left with a limited set of options. It is for this reason that Just Eat has adopted the stance that there is only room for one online takeaway broker even in a sizable market, because allowing for competition would mean that many potential Just Eat collaborators could be seized-up by the competition, and as a result Just Eat’s product offering and value proposition would be diluted. Notes on Challenges Just Eat strives to become the dominant force in world online takeaway ordering, and as such Just Eat is constantly looking to expand into new countries. However, with every expansion comes new challenges, as Just Eat must adapt its service and its marketing tactics to different cultures. The acquisition of regional specialists is perhaps the simplest way of overcoming these cultural challenges, and such acquisitions also serve the purpose of eliminating competition. For these reasons, acquisitions have become a key part of Just Eat’s global expansion plan (for example, Just Eat have acquired both RestauranteWeb and iFood in order to expand into and dominate the Brazilian market). Just Eat’s main merket rivals, Delivery Hero, are also constantly looking to expand by means of acquisition. As such, Just Eat must choose the countries into which they want to expand carefully, as profitability can be much higher in the countries in which the market is less competitive. References For “Executive Summary” Slide CrunchBase (2014) Just Eat (2014) [2] TechCrunch (2014) Wikipedia (2014) [1] Wikipedia (2014) [2] Wikipedia (2014) [3] Wall Street Journal (2014)

Notes on opportunities arising from trends:- Technological: As the proliferation of internet access continues globally, more and more people are beginning to use the internet to make purchases. As this trend continues, Just Eat’s potential market expands. Furthermore, the proliferation of smart mobile devices presents Just Eat with the opportunity to encourage consumers to download its dedicated mobile apps, which is advantageous to Just Eat because they can then reduce their advertising spend by targeting consumers with in-app advertisements. - Access to Capital: Since Just Eat’s floatation on the London Stock Exchange earlier this year, the company has had access to a large amount of capitol which is actively being use to fund acquisitions, service developments, and expansion in general. - Global Conditions: As developing economies such as Brazil, China, and India continue to develop – there are large middle-classes emerging which represent new potential markets for Just Eat’s service. - New Entrants: New entrants struggle to gain any traction in regions where Just Eat is already the dominant force, as takeaways are already locked into the Just Eat service. However, new entrants in regions where Just Eat is not yet dominant actually represent an opportunity for Just Eat as they have sufficient capitol to acquire the new entrants should they begin to gain traction in their respective market. - Market Forces: When economies are in recession, takeaways are seen as a good alternative to more expensive dine-in restaurants, which is the phenomenon accredited to the fact that takeaway usage actually went up in the UK during their period of recession in 2009. When economies are doing well, Just Eat can market takeaway food as being a luxury or a treat which saves consumers from the effort of cooking (as it has been doing to great success in Ireland every since the country began to come out of its recent recession). Notes on trends which represent potential threats:- Fiscal: There is growing pressure on some western governments to higher taxes on fatty foods in order to help combat the growing problem of obesity and other health problems. - Competitors: Delivery Hero are pursuing the same expansion strategy as Just Eat; acquiring smaller competitors who are already successful in their respective region in oder to quickly gain critical mass. This is a threat to Just Eat, as the first company who gains critical mass in any given

region has a significant advantage due to the fact that takeaway/restaurant owners are unlikely to sign-up to more than one competing online brokerage service. - Revenue Attractiveness: It is unattractive for some smaller takeaways to sign up to the Just Eat service as their flat rate of 11% charged to takeaway owners per order is a significant problem for takeaways who do not operate on large profit margins. - Switching Costs: Even though Delivery Hero’s service is of inferior quality, they only charge a 5% commission on orders and so some takeaway may be tempted to switch to them if they feel that Just Eat’s flat rate of 11% commission is too expensive. - Infrastructures: Although internet access is increasing in developing countries, the current state of technological infrastructure is slowing Just Eat’s expansion into certain countries such as India. - Substitutes: Low-fat, low sugar, and other healthy food options are becoming more and more popular in western markets. If this trend continues, it has the potential to have a negative impact on the amount of people ordering what is regarded as relatively unhealthy food offered by takeaways. Notes on trends with no major impact:- Legal: Legal trends are not currently showing any sign of enhancing or impeding Just Eat’s growth. Furthermore, Just Eat have a dedicated legal team who are there to deal with any issues that arise. References For “Business Model Environment” Slide EuroNews (2014) International Business Times (2014) Just Eat (2014) [4] Just Eat (2014) [5] The Guardian (2009) Wall Street Journal (2014)

Business-to-Business Notes The fundamental value proposition that Just Eat offers to takeaway owners is the promise of increased sales. - Just Eat executes wide-reaching and high-profile advertising campaigns at a national level, which serves the function of increasing the amount of takeaways consumers purchase as a whole. - Even though a takeaway owner’s competitors may also sign-up to Just Eat, they can all share in the increased sales generated by Just Eat’s high-profile advertisements. - If a takeaway owner does not sign-up to Just Eat, they run the risk of being left behind as consumers increasingly migrate to Just Eat’s online ordering method. As such, another element to Just Eat’s Business-to-Business value proposition is: “sign-up, or lose out”. - As Just Eat customers have constant access to up-to-date menus online, this reduces the need for takeaway owners to constantly pump money into the production and distribution of leaflets if they sign-up to the Just Eat service. - Most small-time owners have very limited knowledge when it comes to eCommerce, so the readymade and high-quality platform offered by Just Eat is very convienient (& also cost-saving). - The secure payment system offered by Just Eat gives takeaway owners the ability to accept creditcard payments on delivery orders, which was previously not an option for many takeaways. As such, the quality of their service is improved by Just Eat. - Just Eat supplies a customer care centre, another service which individual takeaways cannot usually provide; again, improving the quality of service that the takeaway can provide. Business-to-Consumer Notes The fundamental value proposition that Just Eat offers to consumers is a high-quality one-stop-shop which allows them browse, compare, place orders from, and securely pay relevant takeaways that serve their specific area. - The extensive range of takeaway options offered by Just Eat means that there is always something for everyone’s taste/desire. - The Just Eat service eliminates the need for consumers to spend time and energy searching for physical menus, or for a number of different digital menus on individual takeaway websites. - The Just Eat service allows consumers to quickly and easily compare takeaway menus, and to compare user-generated ratings (which allows them to gain an assurance of quality).

- The ability to pay securely by card or by cash means that Just Eat offers a far more consumerfriendly service compared to independently operating takeaways who cannot take card payments on delivery orders. (And, although some independently operating takeaways do offer card-payments on delivery orders, the Just Eat service offers far more security as it eliminates the need to put your card in a card-reader handed to you by a stranger on your doorstep [the delivery boy/woman]). - Just Eat also allows consumers who sign-up the ability to save their delivery address, and the ability to save their favourite orders. This is very convenient, and can save the consumer from having to repeat the entire ordering process every time they place an order. - Just Eat is also offers convenience in terms of universal accessibility, catering to consumers via its flagship website along with specific mobile apps for Android, iOS, and Windows operating systems. - Just Eat provides a customer care centre, providing customers with assistance when needed (something individual takeaways do not tend to offer). - Finally, loyalty programmes allow users in certain markets to earn points with every order, which can be redeemed for various gifts as an added bonus for using Just Eat. References For â&#x20AC;&#x153;Value Propositionsâ&#x20AC;? Slide Just Eat (2014) [1] Justeat.ie (2014) [1] Justeat.ie (2014) [3]

B2B Customer Segment Notes Just Eat will not segment or differentiate between different businesses with regard to the service and the level of support they provide. - This is important, as although the individual businesses become partners with Just Eat, they remain competitors to each other. As such, Just Eat cannot be seen to be providing different services to different businesses; they must all be treated the same way. - Segmentations/differentiation with regard to sales pitches is a different story: Compared to small takeaway businesses, relatively higher-end restaurateurs are often more familiar with the fundamentals and the significance of eCommerce & online marketing, and so Just Eat’s value proposition can be easier to explain to them. However, there are often more decision-makers in a higher-end restaurant (managers, financers, etc.), and so this can make sales pitches more tricky. These are the kinds of things that Just Eat Sales Reps have to keep in mind when segmenting B2B customers for sales pitches. B2C Customer Segment Notes Just Eat’s service and value proposition is the same for all consumer segments: A high-quality onestop-shop which allows them browse, compare, place orders from, and securely pay relevant takeaways that serve their specific area. - Nevertheless, Just Eat tailors the tone of their marketing/branding towards their most valuable target consumer segment in order to maximise sales from this segment. However, the value proposition is so universal that Just Eat’s marketing/branding can still easily appeal to consumers outside of this specific segment. - The most valuable consumer segment is the same in every country/region: 19-35 year olds, university students & young professionals. However, despite the fact that the most valuable consumer segment is always the same, this does not mean that the same marketing/brand content has the same appeal in every country/region. (For example, compared to the UK, Canada is slightly less receptive as a whole to Just Eat’s edgier marketing campaigns – such as to the Just Eat slogan “give hunger the finger”. While in French-speaking Canada, they are entirely resistant to such edgy campaigns, and they simply do not work).

References For “Consumer Segments” Slide Forbes (2014) NenOnline (2014)

Business-to-Business Relationship Notes - Although the initial acquisition process with takeaway & restaurant owners is personal (individual meetings) – once the business has signed-up and it set up to use Just Eat the relationship becomes highly automated (and highly efficient as a result) with most operations taking place automatically via the JustConnect box (a simple plug-in digital unit which handles communications and transactions between the takeaway business and the Just Eat website). - Businesses can avail of Just Eat’s live chat service if they have any queries or operational issues in relation to Just Eat. This service is available every day during prime business hours (for example, the service is available in Ireland from 5pm-2am on weekdays and from 12pm-2am on weekends). Businesses can also contact Just Eat’s care center directly by phone. - With regard to retention, Just Eat supplies partner takeaway businesses with data regarding their levels of business activity generated through Just Eat via the Just Eat Partner Center (an online portal for partners). Business-to-Consumer Relationship Notes - The highly automated relationship Just Eat has with consumers represents an important part of its value proposition to them, because with automation comes efficiency – allowing customers to make their orders more quickly and easily than with a non-automated service. - The targeted/personalised re-marketing campaigns are a nice touch, but this sort of activity is nothing special in the digital world. - Consumers can also avail of Just Eat’s Customer Care live chat service which allows for instant resolutions of customer problems, leading to much better customer relationships than would exist between consumers and independent takeaways who have no dedicated customer care service. Recommendation to Further Increase Consumer Interaction Although consumers are targeted with personalised re-marketing campaigns, and Just Eat users are occasionally targeted with some targeted email marketing, there is potential for Just Eat to further exploit the data it collects with regard to consumers purchasing habits… For example, Just Eat could potentially suggest certain combo deals to takeaway owners which could be targeted at specific consumers based on their previous purchases. - A system would have to be set-up whereby takeaway owners could view these combo deal

suggestions and decide whether or not to approve them. - Offering such specific targeted deals would have the potential to significantly increase consumer interaction. References For â&#x20AC;&#x153;Customer Relationshipsâ&#x20AC;? Slide Forbes (2014) Just Eat (2014) [1] Justeat.ie (2014) [2] Justeat.ie (2014) [3] NenOnline (2014)

B2B Distribution Notes The combination of the Just Eat online payments system, the JustConnect box, and the Just Eat Partner Centre allows for an simple and efficient transaction & distribution system between Just Eat and the businesses that sign up for the service. - The commission on orders made via the Just Eat platform which are paid for in cash is deducted from the balance paid by Just Eat on orders which are paid for online. - The Partner Centre allows businesses to track their online orders, change details, open or close their business, check their invoices etcâ&#x20AC;Ś With no need for any direct communication. - Businesses who wish to purchase Just Eat takeaway supplies (paper bags, pizza boxes etc.) place their order via the Just Eat Merchandise Store on the Just Eat website (as if it were just another takeaway), and Just Eat outsources these deliveries to a third-party carrier. B2C Distribution Notes Taking no part in the actual delivery process allows Just Eat to keep the company light-weight, and makes it relatively simple to spread the business model to new cities and countries. - However, some cities and countries do not have a food-delivery culture, and so this makes it difficult to move into such territories (this is one of the reasons Just Eat is not rushing to expand into the US market [with competition being the other big one]). References For â&#x20AC;&#x153;Distribution Channelsâ&#x20AC;? Slide Just Eat (2014) [5] Justeat.ie (2014) [3] Justeat.ie (2014) [4] Just Eat News (2014)

B2B Revenue Notes Commission charged on sales is the most relevant and sensible Pricing Strategy for Just Eat. - Takeaway/restaurant businesses are willing to pay the commission, because they can still make a significant profit per sale even after commission is deducted. - The commission-based model allows the once-off charges for subscription and installation of the Just Connect box to be kept low. This is important, as many takeaway/restaurant businesses would be reluctant to pay large fees without any absolute guarantee of profitable returns. Recommendation: Some takeaway/restaurant businesses, particularly smaller ones, are unhappy with the amount of commission they have to pay on their sales. Perhaps Just Eat could adapt its commission policy to charge a smaller % on sales made each week/month up until a set weekly/monthly sales threshold has been surpassed. B2C Revenue Notes - Not making consumers pay extra charges for food or delivery is essential. - If consumers had to pay more for orders made via Just Eat, they would be far less likely to actually use the service to place orders. They would instead use Just Eat to look-up what they wanted to order, and would proceed to actually place the order via telephone in order to save money. - The small transaction fee charged on orders paid for by credit card is something which consumers are willing to pay because it is a service that cannot be provided directly by a takeaway/restaurant over the phone. (Also, these small transaction fees add-up to offset the amount of bad-debt Just Eat is left with from defaulted payments). References For â&#x20AC;&#x153;Revenue Streamâ&#x20AC;? Slide International Business Times (2014) Just Eat (2014) [4] Just Eat (2014) [5]

Notes on Potential Improvements - As mentioned in my notes on the previous slide, not all takeaway/restaurant businesses are happy with the flat-rate of 10-11% commission they have to pay on all sales. This level of commission can particularly be a problem for smaller businesses who do not make as many sales or as much profit as larger businesses. As such, I would re-affirm my suggestion (from the notes on the previous slide): That perhaps Just Eat could adapt its commission policy to charge a smaller % on sales made each week/month up until a set weekly/monthly sales threshold has been surpassed. (Such a development could be important, because it is important to keep partner takeaways/restaurants happy in order to retain their partnerships â&#x20AC;&#x201C; if Just Eat lose partnerships, their value proposition is diminished as the range of options offered to consumers is reduced). - With regard to improvements in relation to customer retention, one issue that Just Eat currently has is that the service does not currently allow for individual takeaways/restaurants to build a personal relationship with their customers. As such, I would re-affirm my suggestion (from the notes on the Customer Relationships slide): That Just Eat could potentially suggest certain combo deals to takeaway owners which could be targeted at specific consumers based on their previous purchases. This would allow for a far more personal interaction between consumers and the takeaways/restaurants they like to order from, which could help to further improve retention rates. (A menu system would have to be set-up within the Just Eat Partner Centre whereby takeaway owners could view these combo deal suggestions and decide whether or not to approve them). - Also with regard to improvements in relation to customer retention, the various Just Eat platforms have room to improve in a number of waysâ&#x20AC;Ś For example, they could provide more information about the takeaway restaurants themselves (at the moment there are user-generated star-ratings, but there is potential to develop a more detailed review system). Also, online menus currently provide only very basic details in relation to individual dishes, so there is potential to improve here â&#x20AC;&#x201C; providing more detailed dish descriptions, ingredient lists, info relating to dietary requirements etc. Such improvements would require the co-operation of individual takeaways/restaurants, but if put in place these improvements could certainly help Just Eat to stay a step ahead of its competitors and retains its customer base. (It is worth noting that Just Eat does have plans to improve upon these kinds of functionalities).

- Just Eat acknowledges that, although its JustConnect box and its Partner Center provide takeaway/restaurant owners with a market-leading electronic-point-of-sale (EPOS) system, there is always room to improve on these functionalities. Just Eat want to improve the order tracking and order management capabilities of their system for example; which is one of the reasons for their recent acquisition of Meal 2 Order.com Limited. Striving to make these improvements will help to keep Just Eat convenience and performance levels out of reach of its competitors, which will help Just Eat to retain its takeaway/restaurant partners. Are There Concerns Regarding Scalability? No. Just Eat’s strong B2B sales strategy, the functionality of their online platforms, the quality of their advertising & marketing campaigns, the reasonable nature of their commission charges, and the quality and convenience of their service are all things which can be easily scaled. The fact that Just Eat has already successfully expanded from serving 1 to 13 countries in the last 8 years is a testament to this. (The one thing that must be kept in mind as Just Eat scales up and spreads into new cities and countries is that different cultures require slight tweaks/alterations to their strategies & platforms. However, this is something that Just Eat is well aware of). References For “Key Activities” Slide International Business Times (2014) Just Eat (2014) [4] Just Eat (2014) [5]

Notes on Just Eat’s Resources Just Eat’s resources imply an offensive strategy:- Their IT systems are the best-for-purpose in the market and are aggressively marketed as such (B2B) [and the patent on their JustConnect system prevents competitors from challenging their high performance in this regard] - Their online platforms are user friendly and are constantly being updated to ensure they are the best platforms on the market in terms of functionality (B2C). - Their network of takeaway & restaurant partners is large and Just Eat are aggressively seeking to expand this network (the sheer size of this network also makes it difficult for competitors to find partners of their own). - Their 13-years of data collection is unrivalled by most competitors and gives Just Eat a significant competitive advantage. - Their strong brand image makes it difficult for new competitors to emerge. - The regional expertise and ready-made network Just Eat gains from its international acquisitions, along with the expertise in market analysis brought to the table by their partnership with Callcredit Information Group, allows Just Eat to seamlessly tailor its strategies and platforms to new cultures as Just Eat expands into new markets. - Just Eat’s dedicated legal team prevent Just Eat’s expansion from being slowed by complicated legal issues as they move into new markets with new laws. - Jut Eat is in a very strong financial position, and they have plenty of money available to fund development and expansion. References For “Key Resources” Slide Just East (2014) [3] Nyengaard, K. (2010) MarketWired (2013) Stanton, N. (2013) Wall Street Journal (2014)

Does Just Eat develop a Business Ecosystem perspective? Given that a Business Ecosystem is “an economic community supported by a foundation of interacting organizations and individuals” (Moore, 1996, p.3), Just Eat has certainly developed a Business Ecosystem perspective… - The interaction between Just Eat & its takeaway/restaurant partners is vital and symbiotic. - Just Eat need the products and the services that its takeaway/restaurant partners provide in order to give the Just Eat service its own value, and Just Eat rely on its takeaway/restaurant partners to provide good quality to the end consumer in order to maintain a positive Just Eat brand image. - At the same time, the takeaway/restaurant partners rely on Just Eat to promote the service to the end consumer, and to ensure that the online consumer journey a positive one, in order to keep sales up. - Partnerships with (and/or acquisitions of) online food brokers who are regional specialists are essential in order to ensure quick growth/expansion into new cities and countries. Quick growth/expansion is important in order to consolidate a large network of takeaway/restaurant partners before competitors can get to them. - Investments from private and public investors have been vital for Just Eat in order to fund this quick growth/expansion. Can Just Eat improve elements of its Ecosystem? There certainly is room for Just Eat to improve elements of its ecosystem… - Partnerships with market analysis specialists such as Callcredit will help Just Eat to take full advantage of the significant amount of transactional data which is collected during the online ordering process. This can Just Eat to gain knowledge that can ultimately be used to improve its service benefiting both consumers and partner takeaways/restaurants, and thus improving the ecosystem as a whole. - One recent innovation by Jus Eat has been the launch of an online Just Eat merchandise store on the Just Eat platform. This store sells Just Eat branded takeaway supplies (such as paper bags and pizza boxes) to takeaway/restaurant partners at a good price. The generous pricing is of course a benefit to the takeaway/restaurant partners, and the Just Eat branding serves to benefit the entire ecosystem as it acts as further advertising for the service as a whole.

References For “Key Partners” Slide CrunchBase (2014) Justeat.ie (2011) Justeat.ie (2014) [4] MarketWired (2013) Medianama (2011) Moore, J. F. (1996). “The Death of Competition: Leadership & Strategy” in The Age of Business Ecosystems. New York: HarperBusiness. p.3. Wall Street Journal (2014)

Notes on Cost Structure - Just Eat’s light-weight cost structure means that the business is highly scalable. - That fact that Just Eat is never directly involved with the production or delivery of the food which it facilitates consumers in buying, and the fact that there are many individual takeaways/restaurants all over the world who already fulfil this role, means that all Just Eat has to do is get takeaway/restaurant partners signed-up to the platform; then, just eat can concentrate it’s operations on consumer acquisition. - The best way for Just Eat to improve its cost structure is to concentrate on lowering average consumer acquisition costs (along with promoting increased user activity and spend-per-order). References For “Cost Structure” Slide Just Eat (2014) [4] Just Eat (2014) [5]

Notes on SWOT/TOWS analysis:The most important things that Just Eat should seek to do going forward are:(1) Use their superior financial situation to continue to expand at a faster rate than its competitors, thus gaining first mover advantage in many regions. (2) Continue to pursue the tactic of expanding via acquisitions of regional market leaders so as to avoid any difficulties in implementing the current Just Eat business model in new territories. The regional market leaders are already adapted to their own climate and so they provide a fantastic platform upon which Just Eat can then seek to roll out its own business model. (3) Use data collected on customers to offer them tailored offers and a more personalised experience overall, so as to compensate for the lack of personal interaction between consumer and takeaway when using the Just Eat service. (4) Be more lenient with the flat 11% commission charged to smaller partners, as this makes it hard for these partners to make a significant profit. It is important to ensure that Just Eatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s partners thrive along with Just Eat so as to protect the range of products that Just Eat is offering to the consumer. References For â&#x20AC;&#x153;A Strategic SWOTâ&#x20AC;? Slide International Business Times (2014) Independant (2014) Just Eat (2014) [4] Medianama (2011) TechNuter (2014)