Deliveroo has delivered a “strong start” to the year, as its gross transaction value (GTV) and orders soar in the first quarter.

For the three-month period ending 31 March, the rapid delivery firms group GTV hit £1.871bn, up 9% year-on-year, while sales rose by 8% to £518m.

The group’s orders soared 7% to 72.6 million, an increase from 6% in the golden quarter of 2024.

Meanwhile, in the UK and Ireland, GTV was £1.176bn and orders hit £1.176bn and 42.6 million respectively, as sales jumped 7% to £327m.

Looking ahead, Deliveroo expects its adjusted EBITDA to be in the range of £170m to £190m, as it eyes investments for future growth opportunities.

Founder and CEO Will Shu praised the firm’s strategy of focusing on customer value.

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“I am really pleased with our strong start to the year, marked by a 9% year-on-year increase in GTV and 7% growth in orders,” said Shu.

“This represents a further acceleration from the fourth quarter. We made good strides in both UKI and International and this improvement is a reflection of our relentless focus on enhancing our customer value proposition (CVP).

“Our CVP investments to date are proving successful, as demonstrated by the accelerating growth in order volumes and our monthly active consumers.”

Shu added: “We continue to have confidence in delivering our guidance for 2025 whilst, like many others, remaining mindful of the uncertain macroeconomic environment.”

The latest results follow Deliveroo revealing during its full year update last month that its performance had been driven by a boost in grocery sales, as it achieved its first full-year profit.

In the full year ending 31 December 2024, the delivery service reported a profit of £2.9m, up from reported loss of £31.8m the previous year. Sales were up by 2%, hitting £2.017bn, marking a rise from £2.03bn in 2023.

Deliveroo has been making investments in its retail division. Earlier this month, the business announced it was to ramp up its retail media offering as it launched a partnership with connected commerce leader SMG, while last week it launched a new white label solution with Tesco Whoosh.