How Grocery Retail Can Capture the Hybrid Shopper’s Mindshare

Consumers are focused on a hybrid approach to buying groceries every week, and they expect both a consistent online presence as well as an enjoyable brick-and-mortar experience. Key to their experience with both is quality. A recent consumer survey conducted by 84.51° found that 61% of consumers expect consistency in the quality of the products they purchase regardless of channel.

And with fresh, ready-to-eat meals becoming increasingly in demand, grocers need to nail the quality and consistency of this opportunity across channels as more than 70% of consumers say they’ve bought prepared food, with half purchasing one to five times over the past 90 days, according to a recent Marketforce survey.

But, with talent and labor complexities and the resources needed to develop, produce and market fresh prepared meal offerings, delivering on this promise across channels can become tricky—not to mention costly. A recent cost model comparison from FreshRealm found that retailers can save up to 40% when they choose to source fully prepared single-serve ready-to-cook meals from a third-party partner rather than assemble them in-house.

That’s why grocers are turning to third party fresh meal providers, such as FreshRealm, to create fresh meals across their online and brick-and-mortar channels. With the company’s wide array of fresh ready-to-heat and ready-to-cook private label and branded meal solutions, FreshRealm is uniquely positioned to offer a custom solution that addresses every retailer and consumer need. Most importantly, the company’s integrated supply chain model provides consistent, delicious quality across channels to meet the needs of today’s hybrid shoppers.

This is especially true given the company’s recent announcement of its expansion of national infrastructure and operations to nearly 1 million square feet. The company accomplished this expansion both by acquiring Blue Apron’s operations and infrastructure, and by adding a new facility outside of Dallas.

Visit FreshRealm.com for a full look at the company’s range of ready-to-heat and ready-to-cook meal kit solutions that are helping retailers gain a competitive edge.