Documented cause
Zapp was a London-based on-demand grocery delivery startup founded by former Deliveroo executive Joe Falter, backed by $200 million from Atomico, Lightspeed, and others. The company offered delivery in 20 minutes, positioning itself at the premium end of the quick commerce market. The unit economics proved impossible at scale: London's high labor costs, premium real estate for dark stores, and extremely competitive grocery market meant that achieving contribution margin on a delivery basis required either very high basket sizes or very high fees — neither of which the market sustained at the required scale. As investor patience for quick commerce evaporated in 2022, Zapp wound down UK operations. The entire European quick commerce sector — Gorillas, Getir, Zapp, Flink, Jokr — faced the same structural problem simultaneously.
Alternative account: Zapp raised $300M from 468 Capital, Lightspeed, Atomico, and others to build a premium 20-minute grocery delivery service in London, Amsterdam, and Manchester. The company differentiated on quality (premium products, branded bags) rather than just speed. Despite the positioning, unit economics were as broken as competitors: high labor, dark store rent, and low average order values. Zapp shut down all operations in December 2022, leaving riders without notice.