DoorDash Understands the Grocerant Niche is Where Consumers Are

Success does leave clues.  There is, one clue regular readers of this blog never get tired of hearing from Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® that is “The consumer is dynamic not static and food retailers need to be dynamic as well”.

At the intersection of the consumer, technology, and the age-old question What’s for Dinner is DoorDash a restaurant delivery & takeout service for food from your local restaurant that is delivered right to your door. While DoorDash was founded in 2013, well before anyone had heard about COVID 19.

Since 2013 DoorDash has continued to evolve and grow with consumers, each step was focused on driving new electricity into the DoorDash brand. DoorDash had targeted the grocerant niche filled with Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food to fuel it growth.

Regular readers of this blog know that grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food continues to drive success within the grocery sector, convenience store sector, restaurant sector, and dollar store sector and DoorDash has decided to grow with consumer relevance by expanding with what they have called DashMart.

Battle for Share of Stomach

So, as NRN put it, “DashMart stores are mini distribution hubs owned and operated by DoorDash. They carry inventory of more than 2,000 items curated from food distributors and restaurants. DoorDash is working with select restaurant partners looking for new ways to sell goods such as spice rubs, ready-made restaurant meals and packaged desserts.

Think of DashMart as a cross between Goldbelly, Instacart and Amazon - but with the ability to bundle items from different sources into one delivery order that takes about 30 minutes”

DoorDash / DashMart Grocerant niche focus in action again from NRN; “In Chicago, for example, locals can order a slice of Raspberry Swirl cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory, a pack of Everything Bagels from Corey’s NYC Bagel Deli (based in Chicago), a pint of Ben & Jerry’s and a hot dog from Nathan’s. But in the same virtual basket, consumers can also toss in a tub of laundry detergent.”

According to Johnson, Mix & Match bunding is a hallmark of the grocerant niche.  Regular readers once again will not all of our blogs about Shoes, blankets, coffee cups, and everything in-between.  

DashMart acts like a mini distribution hub that houses curated products from restaurants, as well as global suppliers like Procter & Gamble and Unilever wo help solve problems that consumers time starved consumers run into daily.  Signature sauces and seasonings from Brothers BBQ will also be available at the DashMart store in Denver when that city goes live next week.

Here is how it works DoorDash buys the DashMart inventory upfront from suppliers and restaurants, a completely different economic model than the delivery division, where restaurants get charged a commission fee per order.

Expanding points of distribution for branded food products with relevance is important as Donald Evans, chief marketing officer at The Cheesecake Factory, called DashMart an “exciting new channel” for the chain’s The Cheesecake Factory At Home products, which includes a new line of cheesecake ice cream.

Driving new electricity into a legacy brand with a partnership is a good move and will accelerate the marketing messaging for all companies involved according to Johnson. How is your company positioning to grow your brand, the top, and bottom line?

Johnson stated “that in my minds-eye the new electricity must be very efficient for the supply chain and includes such things as fresh foods, online ordering, delivery, plant based foods, sampling, toy’s, cereal, developing brands,  grocerant positioning, fresh food messaging, autonomous delivery, cashier-less retail, plates, glasses, cash-less payments, digital hand-held marketing.

All food and beverage retailers to survive the next generation of retail must embrace the artificial intelligence revolution while simultaneously embracing fresh food and beverages that are portable, fresh, with differentiation that is familiar not different.  Does your retail path forward look more like yesterday than tomorrow? Why?

Success does leave clues. One clue that time and time again continues to resurface is “the consumer is dynamic not static”.  Regular readers of this blog know that is the common refrain of Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.  Our Grocerant Guru® can help your company 253-759-7869.