We use instacart, and it's great for the small weekday shopping trip. Maybe in our home we're just more selective grocery shoppers than most, but I would never use them for meat and even much produce. Meat, for example.. I've asked for boneless chicken breasts from the butcher and instead i've gotten prepackaged shrink-wrapped, and recently I requested a single double-cut beef tenderloin and instead got 2 single-cuts. In both cases, InstaCart made amends (50% refund) but I have a meal to cook: I don't want a refund, I want what I ordered.
Another reason we couldn't move totally to IC is how they handle credit cards. We get 6% cashback at grocery stores using the Amex Blue Cash card. (And have a 5% cashback Visa for the stores that don't take Amex). Unfortunately, IC charges come thru as internet services, not grocery. So that's a 6% price increase right off the top, in addition to mark-ups on products and delivery fees.
We purchased their "prime" and will continue to use the service, but i still have the dream of being able to replace all my in-store grocery shopping.
I agree with everything you've said here, and use Instacart weekly.
One thing: in the case of Whole Foods, the chicken breasts in the butcher window are exactly the same as the ones in the shrink-wrap. They just take them out and put them in the window.
The ones in the shrink-wrap are actually more hygienic. :)
To counteract that, you should buy $500 gift cards at grocery stores. I got a year of free Amazon Prime by purchasing two $500 gift cards at Giant using my AMEX card. Check out /r/churning on reddit :)
I'm from abroad. What's this "cashback" thing that I keep reading about? They give you money back onto your credit card, after you paid? Why don't they just give you the discount right away? And what do credit card companies have to do with grocery stores?
I work at Stripe (we handle credit card payments for Instacart). Have you checked the cashback situation recently? AFAIK, IC charges have been coming through as groceries for at least a few months now. Happy to dig further if you'd like to email me at [email protected].
I used to use them weekly, but being consistently late, and also consistently only bringing ~75% of what I ordered, I went back to shopping myself. It didn't help getting mouldy produce, or defrosted frozen stuff, or incorrect items on a regular basis.
Instacart prices are consistently more expensive than having it delivered from the stores directly (including a shipping fee). Here in NYC, where grocery prices are already expensive, it aches me to pay even more.
Seems like NYtimes (1) had done an article on Instacart being expensive (and Instacart's FAQ says that they add a markup)
Google Express is not a competition yet. They do not carry many popular products / perishables.
Hey! This is apoorva from Instacart. Our prices for most stores are the same as the store and we are working on getting other stores to have the same prices as well. Stay tuned :)
That has not been my experience with Instacart in NY. In fact, the website helps find popular, affordable items which helps me avoid the pricey alternatives that are typically promoted heavily by the stores.
Absolutely proud of what Apoorva, Brandon, Max, and the entire team have built. I remember working on their first Android app back in Max's apartment. They're truly deserving of their success so far.
Can't wait to see what they do next with this war chest.
As a comparison, Uber raised money at a $18B valuation in June, and then closed a round at $40B a few days ago. While a smaller percentage increase, Instacart's $1.6B increase in value looks pretty trivial compared to Uber's $22B increase over the same time period.
Instacart is one of the first businesses I've interacted with as a customer that I can hardly help telling everyone I know about. It's just that amazing.
And where do they find such pleasantly disposed people to deliver the groceries???
seems like their executing incredibly well and big congrats to the team.
I do wonder a bit how defensible this model is - it seems to me that safeway already has most of the infrastructure available to do deliveries and then could significantly outperform instacart deliveries from safeway in terms of customer experience for example.
- they always know what's in stock in which facility when you order, no more replaced or missing items
- they don't charge the high 20-30% markup that instacart charges to their customers
in terms of marketing, they could probably have lower cost of acquisition on scale as well.
- they could market their app in-store very aggressively at every single checkout counter.
what Safeway is most obviously lacking is a frontend that's as good as instacarts, but now that instacart has shown how to build it, it should be easy for safeway to build this out.
maybe they don't have their distribution setup such that they could actually deliver within 1-2 hours?
what else am I missing? how can this be a defensible business long term?
We used them recently in nyc and user experience was great. However once you do the math, a 10 - 15% markup on most products in addition to delivery fees, tips, (or prime) is simply too much if you use them on a regular basis. The annualized cost for a small family is easily north of $2000.
Now I know that "price is what you pay and value is what you get". So there are definitely occasions when I will use them.
But I honestly doubt that most of their users realize the true cost of their service.
Just ordered some groceries for tomorrow, hope it goes well. I find myself constantly too worn out after work to buy groceries, and buying amazon fresh is only good for some stuff.
I hope Instacart is coming to Canada soon. Toronto is an obvious choice.
The other city that would very likely be receptive is Vancouver. They're keen on the sharing 'economy' - including a home-grown car-share company called Modo. There are also a few Whole Foods stores in-town. I also read recently that cities with fewer cars per residents are more receptive to home delivery services.
Based on numerous reports, such as this one[1], Instacart Shoppers are currently being classified by the company as independent contractors.
Apparently, Instacart Shoppers are trained, set a work schedule with the company, have their work activities controlled through an app, and even wear Instacart clothing. While classification involves numerous factors, I personally don't see how any of this passes even one of the most fundamental, the "nature and degree of control by the employer" test.
Other on-demand companies that use independent contractor classification are facing class action lawsuits [2][3] over classification and given the general trends in the courts[4], there's little doubt we will continue to see the number of class actions alleging misclassification grow.
Putting aside the costs of defending and settling a class action, or paying damages in an adverse ruling, the real question for investors in any on-demand company that currently relies on independent contractor classification is what employee classification would do to the economics of the business. Think of this as an "employee stress test."
In some cases, on-demand companies are using independent contract classification to shift costs that have traditionally been borne by competitors in their markets, giving them an "unfair" pricing advantage. If they are found to be misclassifying their workers, their ability to compete on price will be affected.
In other cases, companies charge a premium for a service that offers convenience. If they are found to be misclassifying their workers and are forced to pay their workers as employees, the premium charged to consumers would either have to increase or the company would need to be able to live on reduced margins.
The effects of reclassification would be particularly significant for transportation companies. For example, in California, under Labor Code Section 2802, employers are on the hook for expenditures or losses incurred by their employees "in direct consequence of the discharge of his or her duties, or of his or her obedience to the directions of the employer." This includes expenditures related to travel/mileage.
It's going to be very interesting in the coming years to see which of these on-demand companies continue to thrive because I personally think it's inevitable that many of them are going to be forced to reclassify their workers as employees. I suspect some investors aren't giving this enough consideration in their due diligence.
If there is nothing else I've learned from Hacker News it is that there is a non-trivial percentage of the startup community who not only don't care if a tech startup breaks the law, but they actively support and encourage it. Besides that, companies treating contract workers as employees in this way has been a thing for a long time, and I suspect it will take massive disgruntlement to fuel an equally massive lawsuit in order to get any of them to change.
[+] [-] encoderer|11 years ago|reply
Another reason we couldn't move totally to IC is how they handle credit cards. We get 6% cashback at grocery stores using the Amex Blue Cash card. (And have a 5% cashback Visa for the stores that don't take Amex). Unfortunately, IC charges come thru as internet services, not grocery. So that's a 6% price increase right off the top, in addition to mark-ups on products and delivery fees.
We purchased their "prime" and will continue to use the service, but i still have the dream of being able to replace all my in-store grocery shopping.
[+] [-] jbrad7354|11 years ago|reply
One thing: in the case of Whole Foods, the chicken breasts in the butcher window are exactly the same as the ones in the shrink-wrap. They just take them out and put them in the window.
The ones in the shrink-wrap are actually more hygienic. :)
[+] [-] apoorvamehta|11 years ago|reply
And, trust me, that is our dream as well :)
[+] [-] shitlord|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] skrebbel|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] anurag|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|11 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] timcederman|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bmmayer1|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] somberi|11 years ago|reply
Seems like NYtimes (1) had done an article on Instacart being expensive (and Instacart's FAQ says that they add a markup)
Google Express is not a competition yet. They do not carry many popular products / perishables.
(1)- http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/22/technology/personaltech/on...
[+] [-] apoorvamehta|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bduerst|11 years ago|reply
No delivery fee (yet), and I just make the occasional trip for produce, which is fine since I like to pick it out anyways.
Once Google starts charging I'll probably switch to whichever has an API so I can automate my own lists.
[+] [-] grandalf|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bwilliams|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|11 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] HorizonXP|11 years ago|reply
Can't wait to see what they do next with this war chest.
[+] [-] nwenzel|11 years ago|reply
Instacart wasn't first. Webvan was around over a decade ago. More proof that ideas aren't worth much. Execution is everything.
[+] [-] mchristoff|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] abalone|11 years ago|reply
Without that, can you really say this funding announcement is different from Webvan's funding announcements 15 years ago?
[+] [-] spullara|11 years ago|reply
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peapod
It massively increased in size during the dotcom boom along with Webvan and Kozma, after it burst it retreated.
[+] [-] minimaxir|11 years ago|reply
Quadruple? In less than 6 months?
That's not hockey-stick growth, that's just plain insanity.
[+] [-] mikeyouse|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] walterbell|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] SeoxyS|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] mrmch|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] grandalf|11 years ago|reply
And where do they find such pleasantly disposed people to deliver the groceries???
[+] [-] flavio87|11 years ago|reply
- they always know what's in stock in which facility when you order, no more replaced or missing items - they don't charge the high 20-30% markup that instacart charges to their customers
in terms of marketing, they could probably have lower cost of acquisition on scale as well. - they could market their app in-store very aggressively at every single checkout counter.
what Safeway is most obviously lacking is a frontend that's as good as instacarts, but now that instacart has shown how to build it, it should be easy for safeway to build this out.
maybe they don't have their distribution setup such that they could actually deliver within 1-2 hours? what else am I missing? how can this be a defensible business long term?
[+] [-] deathflute|11 years ago|reply
Now I know that "price is what you pay and value is what you get". So there are definitely occasions when I will use them. But I honestly doubt that most of their users realize the true cost of their service.
[+] [-] serge2k|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] miraj|11 years ago|reply
I hope Instacart is coming to Canada soon. Toronto is an obvious choice.
The other city that would very likely be receptive is Vancouver. They're keen on the sharing 'economy' - including a home-grown car-share company called Modo. There are also a few Whole Foods stores in-town. I also read recently that cities with fewer cars per residents are more receptive to home delivery services.
So yes Canada awaits for your arrival eagerly!
[+] [-] andreash|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|11 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] Chetane|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] charlespwd|11 years ago|reply
Keep it up guys!
[+] [-] 7Figures2Commas|11 years ago|reply
Apparently, Instacart Shoppers are trained, set a work schedule with the company, have their work activities controlled through an app, and even wear Instacart clothing. While classification involves numerous factors, I personally don't see how any of this passes even one of the most fundamental, the "nature and degree of control by the employer" test.
Other on-demand companies that use independent contractor classification are facing class action lawsuits [2][3] over classification and given the general trends in the courts[4], there's little doubt we will continue to see the number of class actions alleging misclassification grow.
Putting aside the costs of defending and settling a class action, or paying damages in an adverse ruling, the real question for investors in any on-demand company that currently relies on independent contractor classification is what employee classification would do to the economics of the business. Think of this as an "employee stress test."
In some cases, on-demand companies are using independent contract classification to shift costs that have traditionally been borne by competitors in their markets, giving them an "unfair" pricing advantage. If they are found to be misclassifying their workers, their ability to compete on price will be affected.
In other cases, companies charge a premium for a service that offers convenience. If they are found to be misclassifying their workers and are forced to pay their workers as employees, the premium charged to consumers would either have to increase or the company would need to be able to live on reduced margins.
The effects of reclassification would be particularly significant for transportation companies. For example, in California, under Labor Code Section 2802, employers are on the hook for expenditures or losses incurred by their employees "in direct consequence of the discharge of his or her duties, or of his or her obedience to the directions of the employer." This includes expenditures related to travel/mileage.
It's going to be very interesting in the coming years to see which of these on-demand companies continue to thrive because I personally think it's inevitable that many of them are going to be forced to reclassify their workers as employees. I suspect some investors aren't giving this enough consideration in their due diligence.
[1] http://news.morningstar.com/all/market-watch/TDJNMW201411076...
[2] http://uberlawsuit.com/
[3] http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Handy-com-housecleane...
[4] http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-10-16/fedex-ground...
[+] [-] Iftheshoefits|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ukd1|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] thebyrd|11 years ago|reply