October 5, 2021 | GroceryGeniuses Blog

A new grocery startup named Opie transforms the grocery experience

GroceryGeniuses October 5, 2021

A new grocery startup is transforming the grocery pickup process. Opie promises to fulfil orders in minutes via the drive-thru lane in its latest grocery store in South Carolina. Other grocers offer online grocery services and pickup through various locations. Opie is the only pickup retail store with a drive-thru lane. Shoppers do not need to schedule their shopping spree ahead of their trip. The grocer doesn’t charge any hidden charges or pickup fees. The store will remain open 24/7 to offer quick grocery services. For bulky orders, customers can schedule their orders and plan using the app or website.

Google scraps its plan to offer banking services to its users

GroceryGeniuses October 5, 2021

In 2020, Google announced that it would offer personal banking services to its users through the Google pay app. Google also had talks with Citigroup and Stanford Federal Credit Union to expand the offering. The tech giant has now announced that it abandoned the plan to launch personal banking services. The company wants to provide enablement for banking services to banks and other financial institutions. Other firms like Amazon, Uber also toyed with the idea but scrapped the plans. Apple is the only firm to successfully launch its credit card and is diving into the buy-now-pay-later activities lately.

Amazon launches early Black Friday deals to let shoppers kickstart their holiday shopping spree

GroceryGeniuses October 5, 2021

As the holiday season is approaching soon, Amazon has rolled out several Black-Friday deals across various categories. Amazon lured consumers a bit early to deliver orders timely as the industry still faces supply chain disruptions. The e-retailer is launching discounts and big deals, including fashion, electronics, home goods, food items and toys. Amazon additionally rolled out a new feature this week in its shopping app that allows Prime members to send gifts to friends and family without an address. The shoppers can enter their email or phone number to send gifts.

GoPuff CEO says the “instant needs” business model is here to stay

GroceryGeniuses October 5, 2021

GoPuff co-founder and co-CEO Yakir Gola says GoPuff’s business model is based on instant needs and is here to stay. He believes GoPuff rivals might be outdated in upcoming years but GoPuff will outlast them all. Yakir Gola wants to serve customers better and is working on its international expansion soon. It has its network of mini, high-tech warehouses stocked with inventory. That’s why the business model of GoPuff is different as it doesn’t retrieve stock from other retailers like DoorDash. Its valuation hit $15 billion in July.

An Estonia-based grocery delivery startup is accelerating its efforts to serve European consumers

GroceryGeniuses October 5, 2021

Membo, a premium grocery delivery app originating from Estonia, is all set to serve European consumers. Membo has developed an app-based grocery marketplace that delivers fresh produce and groceries to consumers in various parts of Estonia and will be soon launching in Finland. The business was founded in 2020 and has seen 30% month over month growth. The business model of Membo differs from other grocery firms, as it has a big warehouse instead of various dark stores. The firm is backed by Y Combinator and will join incubator’s Summer 2021 Demo Day next week.

The online grocery business is growing in Australia amidst coronavirus lockdown

GroceryGeniuses October 5, 2021

Due to strict lockdown in Australia, consumers are increasingly using online grocery delivery services. As per IBISWorld, a research firm, the online grocery business might expand by 46.2% this year in the country. Seeing the boom, Hungry Panda has launched its offshoot business Panda Fresh to deliver online groceries and food in Syndey. The firm initially tapped Chinese consumers but now serves almost every household in the largest city of Australia. Woolworth’s online sales also grew by 58% to 5.6 billion Australian dollars (about 4.1 billion U.S. dollars), thanks to the strict lockdown.