1 11
1 11
The launch of the cashierless Amazon Go stores takes shopper convenience to a new level and could reshape the in-store experience, industry analysts say. Though Amazon Go isn’t deemed a direct competitor to supermarkets, reports that Amazon plans up to 3,000 of the stores by 2021 have mass retailers worried they could see a siphoning of their food and beverage dollars, as consumers opt for no-waiting-in-line transactions for snacks, meals or grocery purchases.
Third-party restaurant delivery is growing 100% year over year, something that “may be having as much impact on grocery as it is on restaurants,” said Matt Drewes, SVP of restaurant ad partnerships with Cardlytics.
Instacart continues to raise eyebrows as its presence grows across the grocery space. One of the drivers behind the online grocery delivery provider’s swift expansion is Nilam Ganenthiran, chief business officer.
Amazon’s emergence as a chief competitor swayed Walmart to switch gears from physical stores to e-commerce. The Bentonville behemoth has transformed into a bona fide omnichannel retailer, cultivating an ever more seamless shopping experience between brick-and-mortar and digital.
Chains of all sizes are piloting and deploying automation and robotics solutions to build smart, efficient operations and infrastructure geared for e-commerce. Industry observers expect these efforts to mount over the next year as grocery stores hone their omnichannel capabilities to close the gap with tech-savvy Amazon as it integrates more closely with Whole Foods Markets.
A battle against single-use plastic bags is gaining steam in the grocery sector — and with Kroger’s announcement last summer that it’s planning to eliminate the bags by 2025, there may be a full-fledged revolution afoot.
An ever-present competitive threat to grocers, convenience stores are upping their game — and raising that threat level along the way. Much of that competition comes from the foodservice side of the business, which accounts for nearly one-quarter of c-stores’ $237 billion in in-store sales last year, according to the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS).
As co-founder and CEO of Thrive Market, Nick Green is one of the more enthusiastic spokesmen for natural, organic and non-GMO groceries and sustainable supply-chain practices. What’s more, he leads a company already on the cutting edge: an online-only, membership-based retailer selling “green” groceries at a 25% to 50% savings.
As the labor force continues to shrink, savvy retailers are jumping ahead of the trend toward higher minimum wages and expanded benefits for employees, recognizing that it’s not only good for their business but also their reputation.
Last year’s recalls of lettuce and beef, among other foods, not only posed a severe threat to consumers’ health, but also caused disruptions in the supply chains and substitutions in foodservice applications (hello, kale Caesar salads). This year we’ll see if we’ve learned anything from those incidents.
A number of factors is contributing to the shortage of truck drivers plaguing the industry, including drivers aging out, high licensing fees and a federal mandate that requires most truckers to use electronic logging devices.
![](https://www.supermarketnews.com/sites/supermarketnews.com/files/styles/gal_landscape_main_2_standard/public/1-Amazon_Go_meals_0.png?itok=Cvbbc4z-)