FoodTech big hitters eye new opportunities as reality bites

Every major FoodTech brand coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic driven shift to online ordering now wants to try something new.

This is partly because their rapid delivery business models weren't profitable in the first place. And it’s also partly down to a land grab for 'share of stomach'. 

That’s the view of Viv Craske, Founder of Geeky Foody, a consultancy working with FoodTech and retail tech startups at seed, Series A and B stages.

In a LinkedIn post, he says: “Instacart wants to be a retail tech platform. Gorillas, Getir, Gopuff want to be a lot of things from ad platforms to running Click and Collect stores.”

“Gorillas also wants to do restaurant takeaways with Growth Kitchen. Deliveroo wants to go grocery. Uber wants to be a super app.”

He concludes: “This is a time for focusing on picking the right strategies to win long-term.”

Waitrose

Yesterday, we reported that Waitrose and Deliveroo were expanding their rapid grocery delivery tie up by adding more than 70 new Waitrose locations.

Deliveroo customers will now be able to order Waitrose products for delivery in as little as 20 minutes from over 220 locations across the country - more than two thirds of the retailer’s stores. 

Almost a third of monthly Waitrose orders on Deliveroo are from customers who have never shopped with the supermarket chain before. Top selling items include avocados, blueberries, sourdough bread and milk.

The expansion means Waitrose will be available for the first time on Deliveroo in almost 30 new towns and cities, including Lewes, Cirencester and Newark, where the service is now live.  

The retailer is also trialling Deliveroo Hop, which brings groceries to customers' doors in as little as ten minutes, in Bermondsey, London.

James Bailey, Executive Director for Waitrose, said: “Our partnership with Deliveroo shows the strong demand for Waitrose products and that this is one of the ways our customers want to shop with us.”

“People's plans change and the service ensures we are even more flexible around our customer's lifestyle, giving them more freedom to be more spontaneous about what they eat or drink and when.”

Carlo Mocci, Chief Business Officer UK&I, Deliveroo, commented: “It’s fantastic to be able to build further on our successful and long standing partnership with Waitrose, one of Britain’s best loved brands.”

“By expanding into these new locations, it will give our customers a greater choice of on-demand groceries and household essentials that can be delivered to their doors in as little as 20 minutes.”

FoodTechStaff WriterFoodTech, Rapid grocery delivery, Food delivery, Coronavirus, Online retail, Waitrose, Deliveroo, Gorillas, Gopuff, Getir, Instacart, Viv Craske, Geeky FoodyComment