Uber to acquire Drizly for $1.1 billion to broaden its delivery market

Uber revealed that it is buying Drizly for $1.1 billion. Once the deal is completed, the American ride-hailing and food delivery service company will combine its newly acquired alcohol delivery service with its own Uber Eats App.

Uber sees the acquisition as one way for the company to broaden its reach

It was revealed that the payment was in cash and stock, and the transaction is almost done. The transaction still has some little things to fix, and it is expected to be completed in the first half of this year.

This means that the public will soon see Drizly as an option when using the Uber Eats application. While the alcohol e-commerce and delivery platform will be integrated with Uber Eats, it was clarified that it will remain a standalone app.

“Wherever you want to go and whatever you need to get, our goal at Uber is to make people’s lives a little bit easier,” Uber’s chief executive officer Dara Khosrowshahi said in a press release. “That’s why we’ve been branching into new categories like groceries, prescriptions and, now, alcohol.”

She added, “By bringing Drizly into the Uber family, we can accelerate that trajectory by exposing Drizly to the Uber audience and expanding its geographic presence into our global footprint in the years ahead,”

About Drizly

Drizly is an e-commerce platform that allows customers to order various spirits, wines, beers, and other alcoholic drinks directly from retailers. The items are then delivered to the buyers’ addresses.

This alcohol delivery service was also being referred to as “Amazon for liquor,” and it was founded in 2012. CNBC reported that it offers the service in 1,400 cities across the states. With its current reach and customers, it was noted that Drizly will be able to help drive more people to use Uber’s delivery app.

Finally, with Drizly on board, the Uber Eats app is predicted to dramatically soar in terms of the number of users. Uber was also affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and with the new segment, it may bounce back faster as the demands for alcohol always remain high.