Strong trading over the summer boosted business at Just Eat, the online takeaway specialist, by more than 50%, with an increasing number of its customers using their mobile devices to order food.
The company, which floated on the stock market this year, said third-quarter orders rose 56%, including business from Alloresto, the French company in which it recently took its stake to 80%. Excluding this, orders rose 51%.
The company said the increase came from strong underlying growth and an easy comparison with July 2013, when sales were hit by the summer heatwave in the UK.
Just Eat’s chief executive, David Buttress, said: “I am very pleased with our performance over the summer, a period when even more consumers have enjoyed the benefits of our online marketplace for takeaway food, particularly via their mobile devices.
“At a strategic level, our commitment to developing market leadership in all our territories was further reinforced by Just Eat acquiring control of Alloresto in France and creating a market-winning joint venture in Brazil with iFood.
“We are in an excellent position as we enter the important winter period and remain confident for the full year.”
Just Eat shares fell 4.2p to 303.4p, well up on its 260p flotation price.