The coronavirus pandemic has seen huge investment in a number of fast grocery delivery services. One of the most significant is Berlin firm, Gorillas, which transports fresh produce by e-bike and aims to serve its customers in 10 minutes.

The Nottingham Post reports that the firm’s latest ‘dark’ warehouse (one purely for online shopping) is in Radford. The firm also runs operations in London, Manchester and Southampton.

Up to 2,500 groceries, drinks and household items are available. Customers order through an app and items are then picked in the warehouse before being handed over to an e-bike rider for delivery.

Unlike many firms reliant on bike couriers, the riders are employed directly. Gorillas also provides them a branded “speedy e-bike”.

Gorillas aims to be, “faster than you,” and claims its average delivery time is just 10 minutes.

“We believe that the weekly grocery run is outdated because people’s lives are increasingly spontaneous and shopping habits change accordingly,” co-founder Kağan Sümer told Tech Crunch.

“Additionally, this pandemic has accelerated the need for grocery deliveries. If we can order clothes and trinkets and have them delivered to our door, the same should be said for our essential needs.

“Gorillas helps customers get what they need when they need it, whether this is their weekly grocery list or the tomatoes they forgot for tonight’s pasta recipe.”

He also says the business is geared towards supporting local businesses. “From butchers, bakers, coffee roasters to breweries, as well as a broad range of small brands – we want to elevate local brands and give them a platform and a voice, building a healthy ecosystem where we are helping and supporting each other in each neighbourhood we land in.”

After initially appealing to typical early adopters, Sümer now believes the firm’s users encompass, “pretty much anyone you’d meet in a supermarket.”

Gorillas was only founded last May, but is already valued at over €1bn after raising $290m in its latest round of funding in March.