Another Rocket Internet Company Is Downsizing In SE Asia by PitchBook
Food delivery startup foodpanda is currently shopping its Indonesia business, according to TechCrunch. The price is said to be less than $1 million, and a sale of the company isn’t limited to all-cash offers. This news follows the sale of foodpanda’s Vietnam business late last year, as well as rumors of it trying to sell off its India business earlier this year.
If this story sounds familiar, you may recall Global Fashion Group taking a similar approach with cutting costs amid a chilly fundraising environment. GFG sold its Thailand and Vietnam businesses in April. Around the same time, the company raised a round of funding at a valuation of €1 billion, a stark drop from its previous valuation of €3.1 billion.
Offloading Southeast Asian business arms isn’t the only thing foodpanda and Global Fashion Group have in common. Both companies trace their roots back to Rocket Internet, a firm that has come under fire for taking successful startup ideas and applying them to new geographies (read as cloning). While Rocket Internet has seen much success with this model, and even an IPO in 2014, these developments for its portfolio companies may signal a rougher future.
