Delivr, an Australian challenger to Uber Eats and Deliveroo in regional Victoria, has collapsed into liquidation

Ballarat-based food delivery service Delivr has collapsed into liquidation, ending a business which once touted itself as a profitable Australian competitor to international giants like Uber Eats and Deliveroo.

Founded in 2017 by entrepreneur Alex Power, Delivr focused on a regional Australian city once underserved by major food delivery players.

“We work with local business to try and keep the money in the area,” founder Alex Power said last year.

“As a local startup, we have the ability, the time and the energy to work hands on with our partners in Ballarat.”

In addition to local restaurants, Delivr partnered with chains like Grill’d, Schnitz, and La Porchetta.

In a statement provided to SmartCompany, Power said Delivr completed more than $6 million sales since launch.

But the company entered liquidation on July 20, ASIC records show, with Fabian Kane Micheletto and Michael Carrafa jointly appointed as liquidators.

The company does not appear to have announced its closure online or on its social media channels. The Delivr Android app, which garnered more than a thousand downloads, was online as of Monday morning.

SmartCompany has contacted Power and the joint appointees for further comment.

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Delivr a victim of labour shortages, consumer sentiment: Founder

Like many other delivery businesses, Delivr “did alarmingly well” during through Victorian COVID-19 lockdowns which limited dining options, Power said.

However, the company has since endured “an incredibly hard 10 months,” with Power circling a shortage of delivery drivers “which drove our cost per delivery through the roof as we competed with the giants for the driver audience”.

Seeking to boost its workforce, Delivr advertised a $100 sign-on bonus for new drivers in June.

Consumer sentiment has also tumbled from the highs of 2021, Power added, with the Reserve Bank of Australia’s recent cash rate hikes increasing pressure on would-be diners.

“Sales have floundered” since, Power said, leaving Delivr “untenable” in its current state.

With its collapse, Delivr has become the latest Australian-based delivery startup to thrive through lockdowns but falter in 2022.

In recent months, instant grocery startups SEND and Quicko closed their doors, VOLY laid off 15% of its workforce, and Milkrun, entrepreneur Dany Milham‘s buzzy market leader, dropped its 10-minute delivery pledge due to rising costs and labour shortages.