Just Eat reviews advertising as food-delivery competition heats up

Food-delivery service Just Eat is reviewing its global advertising account, putting incumbent McCann London on alert. 

AAR is assisting with the process and McCann has been invited to repitch.  

The review follows Just Eat’s merger with Takeaway.com in a $8.5bn (£6.2bn) deal last year, creating one of the largest food-delivery groups in the world. 

Shortly after the merger, the Amsterdam-based group announced the $7.3 billion (£5.3 billion) acquisition of US-based delivery platform Grubhub, with the deal set to go through later this year.

The newly merged company Just Eat Takeaway.com is now looking for one shop to create campaigns across its 23 markets.

A Just Eat Takeaway.com spokesperson said: “Following the combination of Just Eat and Takeaway.com, the business has grown rapidly to become a leading online food-delivery marketplace with operations across 23 countries. As a result, we are reviewing our advertising and communications requirements to build on the great work done to date by both legacy businesses.

"Just Eat Takeaway.com is now looking to appoint one global creative agency to help us deliver campaigns with a unified brand platform across all of our operating markets.”

McCann London won Just Eat’s global advertising business in 2018.

Since then, the agency has introduced brand spokesperson Snoop Dogg and created work such as last year’s campaign featuring the rapper remixing the Just Eat jingle – a spot that was listed among Campaign’s top film ads of 2020.

Its most recent campaign, released last week, does not include Snoop Dogg but rather highlights the expansion of service from major brands including McDonald’s, KFC and Greggs.

Competition in the food-delivery market has heated up over the past year, when lockdowns forced many restaurants to close and people to stay at home.

McCann did not immediately respond to a request for comment.