After its expansion in Europe Turkish Geter launches delivery service in the United States

Getter, a leading Turkish express delivery company, has announced the start of its operation in the United States. Geter is holding another round of funding to achieve its goal of spreading to 300 cities in the United States.

Leading Turkish express delivery company Geter has started operating in the United States, the world's largest retail market, just a few months after expanding into Europe, the company's CEO said.

The company's founder and CEO, Nazim Salor, said in a press conference that the company launched operations in Chicago on Thursday and plans to expand into New York and Boston.

Getter is one of the leading startups that has thrived during the pandemic, having attracted nearly $1 billion (9.93 billion Turkish liras) in three consecutive funding rounds this year, and its valuation has ballooned from $850 million to more than $7.5 billion.

“Just like every basketball player dreams of playing in the NBA, a startup dreams of playing in the United States, we want to succeed in the United States,” Salor said.

Istanbul-based Geter, which was founded in 2015, created the 10-minute delivery category for customers who order its service through its smartphone app, with riders hailing from grocery stores in different neighborhoods.

The company provides a daily selection of 1,500 items to its customers, and Getir now operates in 47 Turkish cities.

With increasing investor interest in the emerging industry, the company ventured out of Turkey in January to launch a "last mile" express delivery service in Britain.

Over the past nine months, it has also managed to expand into eight European countries, launching its service in the Netherlands in May, Germany and France in June, Spain and Italy in September, and Portugal in October.

“Our expansion in the US has come at a good time,” Salo says. “We’ve perfected our approach to ultra-high-speed delivery since we built the model six years ago. Now is the time, after Gettier has been established and has thrived in Europe, to go further and offer ourselves for the American market.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a boon for express delivery companies including German grocery companies Gorillas and Flink (grocery companies), as consumers have shunned local stores, buying staples to sweets through their phones.

The express delivery service model is attracting the interest not only of venture capital funds, but also of traditional retailers.

According to Salor, Getter is holding another round of funding to support its growth, as it wants to spread out in 300 cities in the United States.