By Michael Kahn
PRAGUE (Reuters) -With European consumers still cautious, Prague-based online grocer Rohlik Group is bolstering its profit by offering services to other retailers and selling advertising space to food brands as it considers a possible initial public offering, Rohlik founder and chief executive Tomas Cupr told Reuters in an interview.
The privately held company, valued at nearly $2 billion in November, is selling e-commerce, logistics and delivery services through its new platform Veloq, targeting grocers who want to start selling online.
Veloq could boast a profit margin of 50-60%, well above the 20-30% the company’s core online delivery business generates, Cupr said.
A 2021 funding round made Rohlik a rare Czech “unicorn,” or a startup with a valuation of more than $1