Opting for full third-party delivery for grocers came with many short-term advantages, allowing them to offer e-grocery solutions overnight. But this lucrative solution may not be sustainable for grocers who intend to make online an important part of their business. Owning the full omnichannel experience pays long-term dividends.
Utilizing a team of employees vs. its bread-and-butter gig workers, DoorDash is rolling out 10-15-minute delivery of 2,000 grocery and essential items in New York from a DashMart store in the Chelsea neighborhood, the company said. Main rival Instacart is also working on a 15-minute delivery service, according to reports.
Boxed, a seller of subscription bulk CPG items through its automated facilities that competes with Costco, BJ’s Wholesale and Sam’s Club, is expanding into fresh, on-demand grocery delivery with the acquisition of New York-based MaxDelivery. The company plans to leverage MaxDelivery’s high AOV model into other markets in 2022.
Breaking the mold, grocery leader Kroger and home goods retailer Bed Bath & Beyond have struck an unusual partnership, with Kroger planning to carry an assortment of home and baby products from Bed Bath & Beyond on its ecommerce channel as well as in select stores starting in early 2022.
Fabric, maker of automated systems for on-demand micro fulfillment in urban settings, has raised a fresh $200 million, bringing its valuation above the vaunted $1 billion mark as it looks to expand to new markets beyond its current operations in Washington, DC, New York and its launch site of Tel Aviv.
Fintech startup SKUx is looking to create a new category of digital payment to address rampant fraud in online coupons, offers and promotions by using a distributed public ledger system to create serialized, one-time payments that can be tracked and traced.
Independent grocery cooperative Wakefern Food Corp. is testing robot delivery at two ShopRite stores in Pennsylvania as retailers continue to explore automated options for augmenting traditional methods to make e-grocery fulfillment faster and more efficient. Stores in Yardley and Bethlehem are participating in the trial.
Instacart has been on its own shopping spree, hiring away Fidji Simo, who ran Facebook’s main app, as CEO, as well as Facebookers Carolyn Everson as president and Asha Sharma as COO. What’s behind Instacart’s Facebook hiring binge? In this latest MCM CommerceChat podcast, we explore the subject with Orlee Tal, CEO of Stor.ai.
Point Pickup, a provider of last-mile services for grocers, general merchandise and oversize goods, has acquired ecommerce platform GrocerKey, providing an end-to-end solution for retailers looking to own the customer experience and data often missing from third-party solutions like Instacart.
Even a year-plus into the pandemic, more U.S. consumers are leaning into e-grocery and less are visiting stores, according to a new study from Gallup, reflecting continued uncertainty and concern among shoppers. Overall, the percentages of consumers using e-grocery remain in the single digits.