On-demand grocery delivery platform Instacart this morning announced the acquisition of FoodStorm, a SaaS order management system (OMS) that powers end-to-end ordering and catering for grocery retailers. The companies have not disclosed financial details of the deal, but as part of the acquisition, Instacart will integrate FoodStorm technology into its suite of enterprise grocery e-commerce solutions.
FoodStorm has developed a SaaS offering that covers multichannel ordering, order management, payment and fulfillment. Its technology also integrates with several third-party systems, including point-of-sale (POS) systems. The technology also offers CRM features that help grocers collect feedback and take advantage of promotional features.
“Our goal is to help our retail partners increase their sales and ensure that more of their customers’ daily meals come from the grocery store. This is why we are delighted to welcome the talented FoodStorm team to Instacart and integrate their end-to-end, advance ordering and catering platform into Instacart’s leading offering for businesses ” , said Mark Schaaf, chief technology officer of Instacart, in a statement.
FoodStorm, which was founded 14 years ago, has partnered with several existing retail partners of Instacart, including Bi-Rite Market, Mollie Stone’s Markets, Uncle Giuseppe’s and Roche Brothers. Instacart plans to make FoodStorm technology available to more retailers.
Instacart says this new business solution helps retailers bring even more of their inventory online and improve their e-commerce capabilities while meeting customer needs. When it comes to customers, Instacart says the technology opens up a more affordable alternative to restaurant delivery.
“Grocery is an incredibly complex retail category, which makes the need for business solutions like FoodStorm and Instacart critical to the long-term success of the industry we all rely on to put food on. our tables. We are excited about this next chapter as we join the Instacart team and create new ways for retailers to meet the ever-changing needs of their businesses and customers, ”said Rob Hill, CEO of FoodStorm, in a comment. communicated.
Instacart notes that advanced ordering technology solutions offer food retailers a significant growth opportunity. For example, Instacart customers who buy ready meals and catering items like hot and cold side dishes, cakes and sushi at the grocery store have much larger baskets and shop more frequently than customers who do not have one. When it comes to retailers, Instacart points out that pre-order items and prepared foods are also generally more cost effective than traditional groceries such as produce and packaging products.
Earlier this year, Instacart raised a $ 265 million funding round from existing investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, D1 Capital Partners and others. The funding pushed the company’s valuation to $ 39 billion. Instacart also recently launched a faster delivery service, “Priority Delivery”, to select markets in the United States and Canada with the goal of attracting customers who would otherwise have reached the store quickly for their small orders or needs. more urgent.
Comments are closed.