Irish grocery delivery business Buymie has said it is to focus on supermarket chains where it has formal relationships, after telling customers Tesco would no longer be available to its shoppers.
n an email to customers late last month Buymie said it was a “last call” for orders from Tesco, adding: “Watch this space, we may have some exciting new retail partners coming soon!”
Buymie, which offers same-day delivery in Ireland and the UK, has entered into formal relationships with a number of retailers including Dunnes Stores and Lidl in Ireland, and with Asda in the UK.
The company indicated its relationship with Tesco was on an informal footing.
Buymie said in a statement: “As it enters its next stage of growth, Buymie has made the decision to provide personal shopping services solely to official retail partners, where it can deliver the best value for its customers.
“Current official partners in Ireland are Dunnes Stores and Lidl. Tesco has featured on the Buymie platform in an unofficial capacity for over six years.”
Buymie co-founder and CEO Devan Hughes said: “As a home-grown Irish business, Buymie has been proud and delighted to support Tesco’s operations and Irish consumers during periods of high grocery delivery demand that emerged due to the Covid-19 crisis.
“We have made a decision to prioritise our resources on investing solely into our direct retail partners in Ireland.
“Of course our door is always open, and we look forward to welcoming the brand back onto the Buymie platform in an official capacity at some point, as well as welcoming new official partners in the very near future.”
He said the company was growing strongly, with services in new cities that were launched last year performing ahead of projections.
Buymie investors include Wheatsheaf Group (an investment arm of the Grosvenor Estate), Act Venture Capital, and Sure Valley Ventures.