Saudi Arabia is no stranger to American-based Uber, the world’s most popular ride-hailing app. It has particularly become a popular choice for women in the Kingdom who rely on it for their daily commutes (according to figures released by Uber last year, as much 80 percent of its users in the Kingdom are women).
Now, Uber is set to become even more indispensable in Saudi Arabia with the launch of Uber Eats in the Kingdom, as well as Egypt, making it the first international food delivery business to launch in both countries. It is being reported that a locally-designed version of the app will specifically be created for Arabic speaking consumers.
According to Saudi Gazette, the global food delivery app will “add Riyadh and Cairo to its menu of more than 200 cities around the world later this year. The expansion comes on the back of Uber Eats’ success in the UAE, where orders grew by 169% in the 2nd semester of 2017 only, and the number of restaurants opening their doors on the app increased twofold, to more than a thousand active today.”
According to Nic Robertson, General Manager of Uber Eats Middle East and Africa, there has been growing demand in Saudi Arabia for the delivery app. “We’re thrilled to be answering this demand by partnering with national and local restaurants,” he said.
“While we’re a global business with a presence in more than 30 countries around the world, our recipe for success is built on catering to the local taste of the cities we operate in. That’s why we’re doubling down on creating a localized version of the app that meets the needs of the Arabic speaking population,” continued Robertson.
Uber Eats, which partners with more than 80,000 restaurants in 30 plus countries, hopes to join forces with thousands of local restaurants in Saudi Arabia, and create hundreds of work opportunities for the local population as well.
“We have already seen huge demand from hundreds of local restaurants who want to work with us to make their food available to more people by opening their virtual doors on Uber Eats. We encourage any restaurant owners who want to know more about partnering with Uber Eats to get in touch,” said Robertson.
