The HungerStation story: the day the founder lost his company
It started in Dammam with one order from several restaurants and became one of Saudi Arabia's biggest delivery apps. But after selling the majority stake, the new owner ended the founders' contracts.
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Opens on YouTubeImagine building the biggest delivery app in your country, and then in a single day the new owner ends your contract, your partner's, and the whole senior team's. This is the story of HungerStation.
The beginning: the group order
In 2012, in Dammam, Ebrahim Al-Jassim and Hossein Bukhamseen founded HungerStation, which launched that November.
The idea came from a situation everyone knows: a group of friends, each wanting food from a different place. Instead of someone driving around to five restaurants, one order from several restaurants at once.
Ebrahim became CEO, and Hossein CTO.
The sale
The idea spread. In 2016 Foodpanda acquired the majority stake, and HungerStation became part of Germany's Delivery Hero group.
From that point, the decisions were no longer the founders' to make.
April 2019
Delivery Hero ended the contracts of both founders, along with the CFO and the head of product. The stated reason: "rapid changes in the market."
When you sell the majority stake, you don't just sell shares. You sell control.
The company kept going
Even so, the company kept growing:
- 2022: Revenue of €609 million and operating profit above €50 million.
- July 2023: Delivery Hero bought the last 37% for $297 million and took full ownership, implying a value of about $800 million for the whole company.
- 2025: HungerStation Plus passed 10 million subscribers, according to the company.
Competition
The market heated up as new competitors arrived. Momentum Works estimates HungerStation's share of food delivery at about 40% in 2025.
In July 2026 Uber announced a deal to acquire Delivery Hero for €12.7 billion, HungerStation included. The deal is expected to close in the second half of 2027.
That same summer, reports said Ninja had considered a bid for HungerStation.
The lesson for you as a founder
Before you sell the majority stake, know that you're selling control with it. Think about what happens to you and your team on the day the new owner doesn't like something.
Sources: Wamda 2013, FoodNavigator 2016, MENAbytes 2019, Okaz 2019, Wamda 2023, Mubasher 2025, Arab News 2026, Enterprise 2026.
