Can Grocery Shopping become Not So Irritable?

 

Most consumers buy 100 items from a grocery store per year.  Consumers buy the same 100 items as they need them over and over again many times only needing 8 to 14 items on a particular visit and do not want to walk through the entire store looking for them and spending 35 minutes to do so according to Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.  

There is a new company that wants to be less irritable for consumers empowering those looking to save time that company is JackBe who has reimagined e-commerce grocery shopping adding a drive-thru solution to the mix.

JackBe recently completed a December funding round.  The goal is to become a curbside drive-thru grocer. Sounds simple enough we will soon find out if it is in fact as easy as it sounds.  JackBe officially opened its first location at 178th and North May Avenue in Edmond, Okla., on Jan. 10, the first of three locations slated to open in 2023.

In case you did not know, JackBe was funded by CEO Alex Ruhter and three others, the company said it has been working together over the past three years to create a company that makes buying groceries “fun throughout the whole experience.”

Here is the current template for the JackBe concept which will operate exclusively as a location where customers come to pick up their groceries ordered via the custom and proprietary JackBe app. In just minutes, customers can place an order and, when it’s ready, pull into one of the drive-thru bays, where a JackBe team member will deliver the groceries right to their car. With the ability to serve up to 200 orders per hour, the 17,000-square-feet location carries the most frequently purchased products from categories such as produce, meat, bakery, deli, and health and beauty care, as well as baby, pet and consumables.

The launch of the JackBe concept comes at an ideal time, as recent research shows that the convenience and independence that come with curbside pickup has made it a habit for many consumers, especially for those under 50 years of age. Consumers are dynamic not static and the team at Foodservice Solutions® believes that the grocery industry needs to evolve faster than they have over the past 20 years or risks simply fading away.

JackBe CEO Alex Ruhter, stated, “By opening JackBe, we're introducing a new way for customers to shop that provides convenience, value and great quality with no substitutions,” … “We have studied customers’ needs and created a shopping experience that’s designed specifically for busy people. We’re committed to our promise to make grocery shopping a better experience. That’s why we’re excited to share JackBe with the Oklahoma City community, where we are founded and headquartered.”

Every item at JackBe is handpicked, and there are no membership or delivery fees.

Understanding the importance and consumer demand for grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food; Ruhter added that the JackBe stores will soon feature prepared meals as well as local brands in many departments, staying true to the company’s commitment to supporting local businesses. For example, JackBe is planning to carry many items that are a part of the Made in Oklahoma Coalition.

Ruhter continued, “Our commitment to our shoppers is to do everything in our power to offer the best shopping experience delivering both speed and quality — and we look forward to supporting more communities as we grow.”

Jack be is not alone in understand the change consumers are looking for and the role that a drive-thru will play in the evolving grocery business model cording to public records, Amazon is intending to open a 35,000-square-foot Amazon Fresh grocery store in Boca Raton, Fla., the company’s first such store in that state and its first store in the Southeast.

Amazon Fresh Food now Via Drive Thru

Building a Larger Share of Stomach

So, what makes the Uptown Boca Amazon Fresh different from the other 18 Amazon Fresh stores now open nationwide is what appears to be a drive-thru.

Now, according to workers at the site, the Boca Amazon Fresh store will have a drive-thru, possibly for online pickup orders. The drive-thru has one lane, covered by a canopy, that is adjacent to the east side of the building, where double-glass doors lead to the interior of the store. Parking spots, possibly for pickup orders, are also available on the far east side of the building.

Amazon Fresh - Food Faster

Technology, drive-thru’s and a dynamic consumer are driving change and customer migration within the grocery sector, convenience sector, and the restaurant sector.  Does your brand look more like 1999, 2000, 2010 than a consumer relevant brand of today?

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 edify your brand with relevance.  Call 253-759-7869 for more information.