Grab Founder Tried Being a Delivery Rider. Here's What He Learned

Grab co-founder and group CEO Anthony Tan said he became a bike delivery rider for a day, experiencing the daily grind of hustling between orders in Singapore.

Tan shared on LinkedIn how he immersed himself on the operations with the help of an experienced delivery partner, Mr. Lim. It was Father's Day weekend, a peak time for orders.

"I try to do GrabFood delivery every few months. I went on foot the last time, and decided to cycle this time," he said.

He said he had lots to learn as a delivery rider after sharing how he did.

Preparation: Failed

• He forgot to detach the baby seat to make room for the GrabFood bag and failed to install metal sticks in his bag so it could close tightly.

Pick-up food: Smooth

• It was easy to find the merchants and every order was correctly packed. He said he waited an average of three minutes to pick up the orders despite the lunch hour.

Getting around: Slightly difficult

• Tan said he had a hard time due to the rains, and he did not know where to park his bike.

Delivery: Smooth

• He met one person, as most customers chose contactless delivery.

He successfully delivered four batched orders in 1.5 to two hours. To compare, delivery partners there can complete up to five orders in the same duration, Lim told him.

"[Lim is] a father to a 14 year old, and he turns up every day, completing 20-30 orders, to support his family. I really admire his work ethic and energy," Tan said as he greeted fathers for Father's Day.