Albertsons Stumbles with Plated Just like Kroger Did with Home Chef

It took Albertsons two years after buying Plated to figure out what to do with it.  Then, clearly they did not know what to do with Plated, so they played the copycat marketing game and followed the lead of Kroger copying what Kroger did with Home Chef.

Simply put; Albertsons like Kroger stumbled, fumbled, and bumbled away an opportunity for growth instead they devalued an asset in the minds-eye of Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®. That is transform the meal kit provided into a private label instore brand.  Why?

Both Home Chef and Plated were forward looking companies that garnered the attention of consumers.  Each was growing albeit they were unprofitable.  Most important they were both threats to the legacy grocery store business model. How do large legacy companies that are unwilling to evolve deal with threats?

Well, according to Johnson, they buy them and then ‘kill’ them.  In essence both Albertson and Kroger acquired these businesses and tried to turn them into old fashion CPG products that can simply sit on the shelf according to Johnson.  How well has that worked for the grocery industry?

Over the past 12 years, there are now 50% fewer legacy grocery stores in the U.S.  The simple fact of the matter is the grocery business model is broken and buying competitive threats and trying to kill them is not the solution according to Johnson.

Meal Kits as Johnson decried are ‘training wheels for Millennials’. Meal Kits could be an asset for a floundering industry, a glimmer of positive hope for cooking at home, a solution to meal time malaise.  Yet what they have become is a legacy branded CPG product that looks more like yesterday than tomorrow.

Foodservice Solutions® specializes in outsourced business development. We can help you identify, quantify and qualify additional food retail segment opportunities or a new menu product segment and brand and menu integration strategy.  Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma WA is the global leader in the Grocerant niche visit Facebook.com/Steven Johnson, www.Linkedin.com/in/grocerant/ or www.twitter.com/grocerant/