The Future Of Grocery Retailing - All About Platforms/Ecosystems And Tech: Loyalty Schemes, Retail Media And AI Agents
Introduction
Technology is driving a major shift in grocery retailing.Online grocery has introduced grocers to data-ledoperations, platform thinking, AI and ML processes andhas re-launched last-mile deliveries.
This report analyses the evolving grocery retaillandscape, focusing on the significant roles of technologyand artificial intelligence. It examines the strategies ofmajor players like Walmart, Amazon, and Instacart (andothers), highlighting their competitive dynamics in onlinegrocery, delivery models, and retail media.
The analysis covers the expanding importance of loyaltyprogrammes and the implications for data-drivenpersonalization and dynamic pricing. The report alsoexplores the rise of AI agents and their potential impacton the shopping experience, including the challenges andlimitations of current AI tools like Amazon's Rufus and arevamped Alexa.
Finally, the document assesses the future of the industry,considering both the opportunities and uncertaintiespresented by AI and changing consumer behaviour.
Here’s why you need thisreport:
Harnessing the Power of AI,Retail Media, and LoyaltySchemes: Discover how thesegame-changing trends areshaping the future of grocery:
AI: Explore the application ofAI in pricing, inventorymanagement, personalizedshopping, and advertising, withreal-world examples.
Retail Media: Understand thegrowth and potential of retailmedia.
Loyalty Schemes: Learn aboutthe critical role of loyaltyprograms in customerretention, data collection, andtargeted marketing. The reporthighlights Amazon Prime'ssuccess, providing valuableinsights into building a winningloyalty strategy.
Embracing the AgenticFuture: Delve into the potentialof AI agents to reshape onlineshopping. The report analysesthe capabilities of Perplexity AIand Amazon's Rufus, exploringtheir potential to personalizeshopping and streamlinepurchases. It compares theseagents to price comparisonwebsites and examines theirfuture role in the e-commerceecosystem.
Analyzing the Instant DeliveryLandscape: Gain insights intothe challenges faced by rapiddelivery services in the post-pandemic era.
Key Questions Answered
How is technology transforming grocery retailing?How are AI, retail media, and loyalty schemes shapingthe future of grocery? Will every grocery retailer haveto have their own streaming service in future?
What is the state of the online grocery market in theUS? How big is it? How fast is it growing? What areleading players’ strategies?
Will retail media become a bigger channel and moreimportant than online grocery for the leadingplayers?
What has happened to the last mile? How important arethe likes of UberEats, Doordash, GrubHub? Is there stilla market for ultra fast deliveries in the post-pandemic environment? Is the future of the mealdelivery platforms all about expansion into B2Bwhite-label offerings?
What are the challenges and opportunities for Amazonin the grocery sector? What is the future of WholeFoods? What will happen now that Just Walk Outtechnology has been abandoned?
How is Walmart using AI is for pricing, inventorymanagement, personalized shopping experiences, andadvertising now and in future?
Why is Instacart one of the stand out pioneers ofleveraging retail media? Why is its white labelproposition such a game changer?
Loyalty and membership programs are vital forcustomer retention, data collection, targeted marketing,and creating personalized shopping experiences.... Whyis Amazon Prime the gold standard? What are the datapoints of the scheme?
What is the role of AI agents in the future of onlineshopping? What is the potential of AI agents likePerplexity AI and Amazon's Rufus to transform onlineshopping through personalized recommendations,streamlined purchases, and agentic capabilities?
Are these AI agents just a better version of existingprice comparison websites? What is their future rolein shaping the online shopping landscape?Features & Benefits
Comprehensive Market Analysis: The report provides adetailed overview of the US online grocery market, includingmarket size, growth trends, and leading players. It alsoanalyses the competitive dynamics and strategies employedby these major players.
In-depth Examination of Emerging Trends: The reportexplores the rise of AI, retail media, and loyalty schemes,highlighting their potential to revolutionise the grocery sector.
AI: It discusses the role of AI in various aspects of groceryretailing, from pricing and inventory management topersonalized shopping experiences.
Retail Media: The report analyses the growth and potential ofretail media, examining how grocers can leverage their dataand customer relationships to generate advertising revenue.
Loyalty Schemes: It delves into the increasing importance ofloyalty programs, highlighting their role in customer retention,data collection, and targeted marketing. Includes proprietaryPrime data
Case Studies of Key Players: The report features detailedanalyses of industry leaders, examining their strategies,strengths, and weaknesses.... It provides valuable insights into how these companies are adapting to the changinglandscape of grocery retailing.
Focus on the Agentic Future: The report explores thepotential of AI agents to reshape online shopping, usingexamples like Perplexity AI and Amazon’s Rufus. It discusseshow these agents could personalise shopping experiencesand streamline the purchase process.
Insights from Industry Experts: The report draws oninterviews with high-level industry figures, providing firsthandperspectives on the trends shaping the future of groceryretailing.
Data-Driven Insights: The report leverages proprietary dataand company reports to support its analysis and projections.It includes tables and graphs illustrating key market data andtrends.
This report is essential reading for anyone involved in thegrocery industry, providing actionable insights and aroadmap for navigating the future of this rapidly evolvingsector.
Companies mentioned
Walmart
Amazon
Instacart
Doordash
Uber
Grubhub
Perplexity
Kroger
Target
Albertsons
Vizio
Whole Foods Market
Flipkart
Disney
TikTok
Netflix
Hulu
YouTube
Apple
Roku
Chewy
The Home Depot
Ulta
Sephora
Purina PetCare
Nestlé
T-Mobile Park
Climate Pledge Arena
Wonder
Metropolitan Market
OpenTable
Ticketmaster
Atom Tickets
Thumbtack
Clorox
Publicis Media
The Trade Desk
Omnicom
Associated Wholesale Grocers
Davis Food & Drug
Aldi South
Ahold Delhaize
Costco
McDonald’s
Starbucks
Little Caesars Pizza
Blue Apron
Domino’s Pizza
CVS
Best Buy
Wegmans Food Markets
Kowalski’s
Mar-Val Food Stores
Geissler’s Supermarket
Milam’s Markets
Food Lion
Giant Food
The Giant Company
Hannaford
Stop & Shop
H Mart
Fresh Encounter
Fruitful Yield
Plum Market
Robért Fresh Market
Stew Leonard’s
Lyft
Bolt
Tesco
BYD
Cruise
Wayve
Waymo
Deliveroo
Delivery Hero
Just Eat Takeaway
Card Factory
Gopu
Getir
Gorillas
Flink
FreshDirect
Baidu
Alibaba
Taobao
Tmall
Holland & Barrett
Suning
Shopify
Anker
Executive summary
Sizes and market shares, the data
US online grocery in $bn 2017-2024
Leading players in online grocery 2023
The competitive dynamic
Walmart
The winner so far
All about pick up … and delivery
…versus Amazon, launching AI
AI based pricing, ESLs and Scan & Go
The battle over retail media supremacy
Walmart’s ad unit is boosting profits
Connect leading the sector, apart from Amazon
Walmart +, loyalty solution
The Vizio acquisition
Amazon
abandoning Just Walk Out again
still somewhat insignificant in overall US grocery spend
reevaluating the grocery strategy
Fresh reaches the 50-store mark
Plans new grocery delivery platform
Reviving the primeNow idea by delivering for 3P grocers
Amazon Grocery co-locates with Whole Foods
Prime users and spend data
Prime users 2018-23, USA, DE, UK, JP, FR, RoW
Analysis: Prime users 2018-23
Analysis: Bundling for repeats
Analysis: 7 key benefits of the programme
Analysis: the best loyalty programme in retail
Amazon Prime Video pitch reveals new stats
Amazon’s ad ambitions for prime
Average prime spend 2023 in US$, US, DE, UK, JP
Analysis: Average prime spend versus regular spend
Average non prime spend 2023 in US $, US, DE, UK, JP
AI - what is Amazon doing?
The Anthropic investment
Amazon launches Q, its answer to ChatGPT
Amazon’s Q has ‘severe hallucinations’
AI for the marketplace, what will happen?
Will AI make the human 3P seller obsolete?
If not now, then … maybe in future?
Rufus: A new generative AI feature to answer shopper’s questions
Rufus between broad and contextual - underwhelming
Rufus as a first step to the agentic future?
Rufus is hallucinating too much
AI Advertising, Ad Relevance, impressive uplift stats
AI Advertising, ID-free targeting capabilities
What is going on with Alexa?
New Alexa missing deadlines, lacking skills
Alexa as the first AI (shopping) agent?
Instacart
Becoming more important in the industry
falls to 2023 loss, 2024 profits coming from retail media
Instacart and Uber Eats, a one way partnership
Instacart’s affluent customers as main draw
The importance of retail media
e-comm storefronts, carrot ads, caper carts
Carrot ads - a white label retail media platform
Youtube as an osite partner
The platform benefit
The food delivery aggregators
The true e-commerce giants in online food
The big three: DoorDash dominates, Uber Eats and Grubhub
Subscription deals & new partnerships, data collection gold mine
Delivering groceries as a natural extension of the existing service
Going into retail media/advertising
What about becoming white label?
DoorDash
The undisputed market leader
Financials moving in the right direction, though still loss making
Uber Eats
Uber, becoming an everything app?
Uber, FY profits for the first time, expands again
Uber’s platform advantage, Uber One, the ad business
Uber versus Amazon
Uber Eats …is profitable, why is it the only one?
Uber Eats, growth opportunities
Just Eat Takeaway
Grubhub M&A has not worked out
Grubhub's partnership with Amazon
Healthy financial outlook
Just Eat to sell Grubhub at a loss of more than $6.5bn
The death of instant delivery
Gopu on a downward trend
Gopu becoming a merger target?
Gopu the last man standing, now going B2B
Getir: from global player to Turkey only
The Fresh Direct acquisition, what now?
AI Agents - towards an agentic future?
The state of play in China
Perplexity AI integrates with Amazon, Best Buy, Shopify