Former Just Eat CEO, David Buttress, has invested in Egypt-based food technology (foodtech) and digital ordering platform elmenus, and joined its board of directors.

Buttress brings decades of substantial entrepreneurial and investment experience having joined Just Eat in 2006 to launch its UK business. He led Just Eat in making global acquisitions and investments including the acquisition of MenuLog in Australia for $855 million and taking a majority stake in Brazil’s iFood. 

He is currently a venture partner at global venture capital firm 83 North, and has several successful startups in his portfolio.

elmenus was founded in 2011 by its current chief executive officer (CEO) Amir Allam and focuses on personalising food recommendations on its online food ordering platform. The company now counts over 1.5 million monthly users and claims to have achieved 300 percent month-on-month growth.

Last February, elmenus raised a $8 million in its Series B funding round, led by UAE-based venture capital fund, Global Ventures and Egypt-based Algebra Venture. Last year, it also launched it own fleet of drivers.

“As we aim to become the go-to food app for all dining decisions, and a partner of choice to restaurants to help them solve their scaling challenges in the Mena region, I believe David’s insights and exceptional record will play a vital role in accelerating our growth and guiding elmenus in acquiring a significant share of the market. We are very excited to be working with an industry veteran like David. His belief in our vision is a grand testament to us,” said Allam.

David Buttress said:  “elmenus’ exponential growth this past year has been quite remarkable. It has been owning the food discovery approach, making it the stronger partner to restaurants as it provides them with more than just online ordering services.

“While elmenus witnessed a 3x growth in 2020 since delivery increased drastically in light of the Covid-19 challenges and more restaurants outsourced their delivering operations, the company is expected to grow 10x in 2021 as it upscales its product and restaurant offerings. It is an exciting time in the company’s evolution,” he added.

In the next 18 months, elmenus plans to scale its offering and expand its market share, and enhance its social and personalised dish discovery experience, with 4000 new drivers to be recruited.  

Egypt remains one of the fastest growing foodtech markets in the Mena region, however, the sector is still widely underserved.  According to data from elmenus, the penetration of orders placed online in Egypt falls below 5 per cent of total delivery orders, which means 95 per cent of all orders for takeaway or delivery are still placed on the phone.