Dubai – Mubasher: Duba-based Careem on Monday announced the launch of its food delivery application “Careem NOW” in the Middle East with total investments of $150 million.
Careem, Uber’s main ride-hailing app rival in the Middle East, will start operating food delivery services in the emirate of Dubai and the Saudi city of Jeddah.
“We believe the opportunity for deliveries in the region is even bigger than ride-hailing. It is going to become a very significant part of Careem over time,” Mudassir Sheikha, Careem’s co-founder and CEO, said.
The app has become available after being pushed as an update to RoundMenu, which has been acquired earlier in 2018 by Careem in a bid to expand food delivery.
The UAE's ride-hailing firm noted that Careem NOW has four main options, namely popular, handpicked collections, nearby and more choices.
Earlier in July, the company revealed its plans to launch food delivery business by September.
CareemFood would be first launched in Pakistan in September, followed by the UAE, Saudi Arabia, other Gulf countries and Egypt, it said.
The new application is similar to Uber Eats, an American online food ordering and delivery platform launched in 2014.
Earlier this month, Careem announced the launch of its bus services, Careem Bus, in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan, with $100 million in investments.
Careem said that it was seeking to launch Careem Bus in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan next year after completing the pilot operation of the service in Egypt.
