Management feud at delivery app Getir turns bitter

A POWER STRUGGLE at grocery delivery company Getir is turning increasingly bitter as the Istanbulbased startup shuts down foreign operations and shareholders spar over key management positions.

The acrimony between the company’s Turkish founders and foreign investors, led by Abu Dhabi’s wealth fund Mubadala, reached a new high last week following the dismissal of an executive in charge of strategy, according to several people with direct knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be named speaking about problems inside the private company.

Getir’s management, led by co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Nazim Salur, on May 6 dismissed Chief Strategy Officer Derya Erdemli, who was supportive of foreign investors’ strategy of downsizing, the people said. Mubadala is Getir’s biggest shareholder, holding about 30% compared with 25% for Mr. Salur and other Turkish investors, the people said.

Getir, Mubadala, Mr. Salur, and Ms. Erdemli declined to comment for this story.

The internal strife is a sign of the once-hyped rapid delivery market — and its flagship company — crashing back to reality. Getir’s promise to deliver groceries in 10 minutes worked well in Turkey — where labor and operating costs are low — but was tougher to execute abroad, despite the startup raising a mammoth $2 billion in venture capital to fund its expansion, according to data from PitchBook. —