Kroger grows delivery footprint by 50% after partnership with Instacart

USA – Kroger, an American retailing company, has expanded its same-day grocery delivery services through its partnership with Instacart, announcing a 50% delivery footprint after the partnership deal.

According to FoodDive, the company announced it will add the service to 75 additional markets, including Atlanta, Nashville and Memphis, by late October.

This expansion will grow Kroger and Instacart’s nationwide footprint by 50%, making the service available at more than 1,600 stores.

Kroger and Instacart first announced their partnership in the fall of 2017 and expanded the service in March.

The expansion is a win for Kroger, which continues to meet consumer needs for convenience while increasing its competitive threat against Amazon and Walmart in the delivery channel.

An added benefit to this partnership’s expansion is that consumers won’t have to leave Kroger’s website to facilitate the service.

The grocer gets a big advantage of maintaining that one-click convenience and brand consistency without reinventing the backend —  Instacart’s tech infrastructure makes the orders happen.

Additionally, if and when grocery delivery becomes conventional and habitual for consumers, Instacart will be one of the biggest drivers of that behavior.

With the nation’s largest grocery store chain prioritizing delivery, it illustrates that we’re rapidly barreling toward an on-demand era, where the winners will be determined by what they do outside of their stores as much as what they do in store.

“We are redefining the customer experience through Restock Kroger by rapidly accelerating our customer coverage area for seamless shopping, giving our shoppers the choice of stores, delivery, curbside pickup or ship to your door,” Matt Thompson, Kroger’s digital vice president of ClickList.

“We value our Instacart partnership, and the expansion is just one more way Kroger is offering millions of our customers across America the fresh food and groceries they want, when they want them.”

FoodDive added that the online grocery industry is projected to reach US$100 billion by 2025, with 70% of consumers expected to shop online, so most, if not all, of Kroger’s investments should eventually pay off.