Addis Ababa’s streets are increasingly orange. The color belongs to beU delivery, a food delivery platform that has completed 3 million orders in Ethiopia. The company reported $13.4 million in revenue for 2024 and reached profitability in May of that year [AEO/SIG, December 2024].
The low-price wedge
beU’s strategy is a direct assault on affordability. The company claims its delivery fees are 67% cheaper than competitors [LinkedIn][Business Info Ethiopia]. It charges restaurants a 10% commission, anchoring its business on high-volume, low-margin transactions [Trendtype Africa and Middle East]. The platform processes roughly 4,000 daily orders, with food representing 90% of its completed deliveries [AEO/SIG, December 2024].
The founder’s second act
Hao Zheng, beU’s CEO, was previously the founder of Ztelic, a Chinese social network-data startup acquired by Yahoo in 2013 [TechCrunch, July 2013]. He also served as CTO and co-founder at PlusAI Inc. [Bloomberg Markets]. Co-founder Almas Beleshov acts as Chief Marketing Officer, while Matt Vasilev is the COO [CB Insights][LinkedIn].
| Founder | Role | Notable Background |
|---|---|---|
| Hao Zheng | CEO & Founder | Founder of Ztelic (acquired by Yahoo); CTO/Co-Founder, PlusAI Inc. |
| Almas Beleshov | Founder & CMO | Studied at Beijing Jiaotong University. |
| Matt Vasilev | COO & Co-Founder | Operational lead. |
The path to profitability
Reaching profitability within five years of founding is beU’s most compelling argument. Its model appears to avoid the deep discounting that plagues food delivery in other regions, instead competing purely on the service fee. Its expansion beyond pure food delivery, such as a partnership with CheMed for pharmacy deliveries, suggests an intent to increase utilization of its rider network [LinkedIn].
Where the model faces pressure
- Fuel and operational inflation. A logistics business running on motorbikes is exposed to fuel price volatility.
- Competitive response. Rivals may choose to match its low-fee structure.
- Market concentration. beU’s success is heavily concentrated in Addis Ababa.
The next twelve months
beU’s seed round from 2022 has likely been deployed. The next logical step is a Series A round to fund geographic expansion within Ethiopia and potentially into neighboring markets. The profitability milestone makes it an attractive candidate for growth capital.