The Friday Checkout is a weekly column providing more insight on the news, rounding up the announcements you may have missed and sharing what’s to come.
Convenience — at least when measured in terms of delivery speed — has become a tricky topic for the grocery industry to tackle as it continues to respond to changing consumer behavior.
The industry’s quest for convenience in recent years has seen the rise — and quick fall — of rapid delivery firms in the U.S. while supermarket chains have rolled out convenience delivery for limited assortments with a faster delivery time and Amazon and Walmart have invested in drone delivery. Fulfilling consumers’ must-have and need-it-now needs have been at the heart of these moves.
But the grocery industry might be taking the wrong approach around consumer needs when it comes to convenience, panelists said during an online panel co-hosted by Placer.ai and Dunnhumby Tuesday.
“I do think there’s a very huge difference between not wanting to be inconvenienced versus prioritizing convenience,” Ethan Chernofsky, senior vice president of marketing at Placer.ai, said during the panel. “And I think we sometimes assume the latter is the key when it’s not. It’s the former.”
As grocers face new challenges with ongoing food cost concerns from shoppers, lowered comps and reduced government food assistance, it might be best for them to dial down the race for offering faster delivery speeds and focus instead on getting e-commerce fundamentals down.
“It doesn’t need to be the simplest point from point A to point B in terms of getting what I want,” Chernofsky said.
In case you missed it
Publix offers online medical care
The Southeastern grocery chain said Tuesday that it has started offering telehealth services through an arrangement with virtual healthcare provider WellSync. The service allows shoppers to receive treatment for a variety of medical conditions, including allergies, sinus infections and hair loss for a flat rate of $25. Appointments and insurance are not required.
To use the service, people submit an online questionnaire for review by a licensed medical provider. WellSync will respond to submissions in as little as an hour, although patients might have to wait longer to hear back during off-hours, Publix said.
Save Mart adds a delivery provider
The supermarket chain has started offering grocery delivery service in conjunction with Shipt at more than 170 Save Mart, Lucky California and FoodMaxx stores in California and Nevada, according to a Wednesday announcement. The tie-up builds on Save Mart’s existing e-commerce partnerships with Instacart and DoorDash.
Under the arrangement, shoppers can use Shipt’s website and app to order alcohol from Save Mart stores in California cities, including Fresno, Sacramento, San Jose, Modesto and San Francisco.
Smart carts roll into more ShopRite stores
Four Pennsylvania ShopRite locations are adding Caper Cart smart carts from Instacart as the Wakefern Food Corp. banner broadens adoption of the equipment, according to a Thursday press release. The ShopRite stores adding the carts include the Morrell Plaza, Bridge & Harbison, Brookhaven and Drexeline ShopRite locations, all of which are in or close to Philadelphia.
Wakefern said it has so far brought Caper Carts to 11 ShopRite stores. The supermarket cooperative also plans to bring the tech-laden carts to a ShopRite store set to open in Mount Kisco, New York, later this year.
Number of the week: 10%
That’s the pace at which Kroger boosted its dividend payment to shareholders this week. The rate is slightly below where it was last year — and less than half of the rate in 2022.
What’s ahead
Next jobs report due
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is set to release its latest employment report next Friday. The data will provide insight into the grocery industry workforce during June as labor challenges persist.
Impulse find
Whatcha going to do when they deliver groceries for you?
A person in Arizona who placed a Fry’s order through DoorDash got a surprise when a police officer showed up with the grocery delivery, local news station KTVK reported.
“I look out of the window. Two cop cars pull up. Three cops come dashing out, and I was like, ‘Oh my God! What’s happening,’” Waden Khan, who made the order, told the news outlet.
Turns out that the DoorDash driver handling the order was arrested, prompting one of the police officers who was involved to decide to finish the delivery instead of taking it back to the store, KTVK reported.
