Jitse-Groen-founder-and-CEO-of-Just-Eat-Takeaway

Just Eat Takeaway’s CEO Jitse Groen is departing the company he founded 25 years ago.

Groen will be succeeded by Roberto Gandolfo, head of Prosus Europe – the company that acquired JET earlier this year.

Groen launched Thuisbezorgd.nl (Takeaway.com) as a student in a small attic in Enschede in the Netherlands. The company grew and grew – acquiring Lieferando in 2014 and merging with Just Eat in 2020 – and now operates in 16 countries. It is the biggest food delivery player in the UK, Germany and the Netherlands.

“After a quarter century as founder and CEO of Just Eat Takeaway.com, I am leaving the company today,” Groen said in a statement this morning. “I am immensely proud of what our team has built, and I want to extend my deepest gratitude to everyone who has been part of this remarkable journey.”

JET has built a base of 60 million consumers and 362,000 partners, it said. The company completed 653 million orders and processed €19bn in gross merchandise value in 2024.

JET’s €4.1bn acquisition by Dutch investment group Prosus was given the go-ahead by the European Commission, in August. Prosus said it aimed to “build a Europe-based food delivery champion”.

Gandolfo is currently chair of the JET Supervisory Board as well as Head of Prosus Europe. His appointment will be subject to approval by the Dutch Central Bank.

He joined Prosus in 2025 after more than a decade at Brazilian online food ordering and delivery platform iFood, where he served as CEO of its marketplace business. Under his leadership, the platform scaled from a million to 120 million profitable monthly orders, reached more than 60 million annual customers, and expanded its network to 400,000 merchant partners and 400,000 couriers.

Just Eat

“Very few founders can claim to have built a company that reaches this level of scale, impact and relevance,” said Fabricio Bloisi, CEO of Prosus. “Jitse’s contribution will remain a defining part of JET’s history and future, and we wish him the very best in his next chapter.

“As JET enters this next phase under Prosus ownership, our focus is on execution and delivery for our customers and partners. We will move fast to transform JET through a focus on product, customer and innovation, creating a true European tech champion that will reshape the future of food delivery.”

Bloisi will replace Roberto Gandolfo as chair of the JET supervisory board.

Bloisi said Gandolfo had “a proven track record in scaling complex operations, driving product and technology-led transformation, and leading high-performing teams”.

“He brings deep industry experience, an entrepreneurial mindset, strong strategic clarity and fresh ambition required to guide JET into its next chapter,” Bliosi said.

Groen’s departure follows the stepping down of Just Eat rival Deliveroo’s founder and CEO Will Shu. Shu relinquished the role after the aggregator app’s £2.9bn acquisition by DoorDash last month.

Shu founded Deliveroo in 2013 with childhood friend Greg Orlowski, and was its first delivery rider.