Stuart announced yesterday the closure of the delivery service in Spain and Portugal. The delivery platform published a statement in which it explained that the territory has ceased to be strategic due to inflation and the Spanish rider law, which from 2021 obliges self-employed deliverymen to become employees.
In Spain, the company works in the cities of Barcelona, Madrid, Zaragoza, Bilbao and Valencia. The company did not communicate the number of people affected by this decision. Sources from the UGT and the CGT, which have representation among the workforce, pointed out that the number of affected workers is around 200. Of this total, 85% are couriers and 15%, office and warehouse In addition, around 200 self-employed delivery drivers would also lose their jobs, according to union sources.
In a statement in English, Stuart announced that it has started the procedures to apply for an employment regulation file (ERO) and that, in compliance with the legal requirements, it is open to collaborate with the works committee to agree on the dismissal conditions. Union sources indicated yesterday that the negotiations could last between two and three months, so that this process should conclude in the summer.
According to the company, the stoppage of the service in Spain does not affect the activity of the technology center in Barcelona which provides service on a global scale. Instead, union sources assured that part of the workforce will lose their jobs. The number of workers in this center exceeds 200 people, assured CGT sources. The company declined to share that figure. Last year he said the workforce was 250 people.
With this decision, Stuart ends almost 10 years of service in Spain. Founded between Paris and Barcelona by entrepreneurs Clément Benoit and Benjamin Chemla, the startup always stood out from other platforms for operating only with companies (restaurants, shops, supermarkets) and not with the final consumer.
In 2017 Stuart was acquired by the French group Geopost (owner of Seur and manager of the French postal service La Poste), which had previously entered as an investor in the startup. The property remained in the hands of this French group until the end of last year, when the sale of Stuart to the investment fund Mutares, based in Germany and specialized in refloating companies, was made public. From then on, Cornelia Raportaru took over from Matthieu Gonnet as CEO. Yesterday the new director said: "These decisions are not taken happily, but they are essential to protect our long-term sustainability". Now they are betting on more profitable markets, such as the UK, Poland, France and Italy.
In Spain, the company invoiced 29.9 million euros and recorded net losses of 2.7 million in the 2022 financial year, the last with the accounts published in the Mercantile Registry. In the previous four years, the company had not recorded a net profit.
