Dive Brief:

• DoorDash is reportedly planning to expand in Germany, which would mark the foodservice delivery company's European debut, according to the Quebec News Tribune. DoorDash has 21 job posting listed in Berlin, with roles ranging from management to recruitment and logistics. 
• The United Kingdom is also on DoorDash's radar for expansion, and it could enter either Germany or the U.K. through an acquisition or launch in these markets alone, Bloomberg reports. DoorDash has not confirmed its plans for either country.
• The German market has been dominated by Just Eat Takeaway (known in Germany as Lieferando) since its acquisition of Delivery Hero in 2018, while Lieferheld, Pizza.de and other smaller players also jockey for share. U.S. competitor Uber Eats announced its intention to expand into Germany last month. Germany could be ripe for new competition, however, as Deliveroo exited the market in 2019. Deliveroo hasn't ruled out a return to the country, however.  

Dive Insight:

Translating DoorDash's dominance in the U.S. — it commands 56% of the delivery space as of April — to the European foodservice delivery space may be a challenge. The European market has been just as competitive, with Grubhub parent Just Eat Takeaway and Deliveroo battling for market share. 

Still, DoorDash remains mum on the potential German expansion. 

"At DoorDash we're focused on providing our customers, merchant partners and Dasher community with unparalleled access to opportunities and services," the company said in an emailed statement. "Today we're operating in over 4,000 cities across the U.S., Canada and Australia, and we're always thinking about ways to enhance and scale our platform to serve more communities. We continually assess expansion opportunities as we aim to further build our international presence."

Despite the competition, opportunity could exist for DoorDash beyond foodservice, however. Just Eat Takeaway only focuses on restaurant foodservice delivery, Bloomberg Intelligence reports. But DoorDash has been building out its business to include grocery delivery and an online convenience store. Grocery delivery has been growing in the U.K. while startups have entered the space in Germany, according to Bloomberg. DoorDah could have a leg up on startups because of its experience, existing technology infrastructure and logistics.

This experience could help DoorDash navigate the German delivery landscape. The overall German foodservice market is only expected to grow by a compound annual rate of 2.33% through 2026, a nominal number that could pressure a crowded foodservice delivery space.

European food delivery app revenues, however, have jumped from $6.6 billion in 2015 to $18.9 billion in 2020. The European market is expected to continue growing to $29.1 billion by 2025, according to a Business of Apps report. Usage in the market has also gone up, from 65 million food delivery users in Europe in 2015, to 150 million in 2020.

As it did in the U.S., the pandemic accelerated the growth of delivery in Europe and may have shifted consumer behaviors toward the convenience for good. In the U.K., for example, delivery orders jumped by nearly 400% in Q4 of 2020 year-over-year, according to The Guardian. Signs are pointing to this behavior sticking around even as dine-in returns. According to McKinsey, approximately 35% to 55% of existing consumers in Europe intend to continue using delivery more in the future.