Sprouts, Pod Foods Partnership Aims to Circumvent Supply Chain Delays

Sprouts Farmers Market has partnered with Pod Foods, a tech-enabled, data-driven full-service distribution solution, that will give the grocer access to Pod Foods' virtual warehouse of emerging CPG brands—circumventing supply chain delays and getting products Sprouts customers want on the shelves faster, the companies said in a release.

Pod Foods' “virtualized wholesale” model supports trending products and allows retailers to quickly reset and expand their inventory to meet changing customer needs, the company said in a release. This helps solve the “global supply chain problem by connecting grocery retailers with emerging and local brands across the U.S. in real-time, with minimal risk and accelerated speed to shelf,” it said. 

Sprouts also will be able to leverage Pod Foods’ data-driven discovery engine, which tracks consumer habits and product demand at the regional level and enables stores to curate inventory accordingly. “With the entire marketplace hosted on a single distribution platform, retailers are provided with personalized product recommendations and optimized fulfillment capabilities, with automation features built-in to ensure the flow of products is never disrupted,” Pod Foods said in a statement, adding that retailers still get the logistics support they are used to with traditional distributors, but "with more advanced data and support to navigate potential shortages or delays."

Pod Foods said it is opening a new distribution center in the Southeast and that a warehouse in Florida will service the 130 Sprouts locations—spanning from Tennessee to Florida—that have joined the Pod Foods network

Pod Foods co-founder and CEO Larissa Russell said the company is “extremely excited to announce these new partnerships with Sprouts, which speaks to the market need for Pod Foods. Traditional distributors are unable to match the speed of our placement process, and both national and regional chains across the U.S. have taken notice. As consumer preferences continue to drive product demand and retailers look to new strategies to keep shelves stocked, Pod Foods is the catalyst driving a new wave of procurement, customization and customer satisfaction.”