Online grocery sales are currently in the single digits, but new data predicts that by 2026, they will have surpassed 20%, owing to more people being comfortable buying food this way in the last two years.
According to the current Brick Meets Click/Mercatus Grocery Shopping Survey, which was issued recently, the market saw sales of $8.6B in August, up 28.4% from $6.7B in July and up 4.9% from $8.2B in August 2020.
Supermarkets are still up against tough competition from mass merchants. The percentage of online customers who use both a grocery service and a mass/discount service to buy groceries increased to 26% in August from 25% in July, with cross-shopping levels currently at 8% and 11% higher, respectively than in August 2020 and August 2019.
Meanwhile, JOKR, an instant grocery delivery service, has secured a $260M Series B investment round, valuing the firm at $1.2B and elevating it to unicorn status nine months after its founding. Activant Capital, Balderton, Greycroft, GGV Capital, G-Squared, HV Capital, Kaszek, Mirae Asset, Monashees, Moving Capital, Tiger Global and others participated in the funding round.
JOKR Future Plans
The company wants to use the proceeds to expedite its expansion plans in Latin America and the United States, where it has previously made inroads. The company intends to expand its services to new cities and neighbourhoods by focusing on these high-growth markets. The funds will also be set aside for continuing to invest in technology and the customer experience.
JOKR will also focus on marketing and data science and technology development efforts on new client acquisition and growth, notably in the procurement and supply chain.
The company has also developed a new version of its product and app since its last fundraising round, providing a more personalised and curated experience as it moves away from only offering convenience items. By the end of next year, JOKR wants to be carbon neutral in its operations.
JOKR Founder and CEO Ralf Wenzel stated, “We are really pleased with what we have done with JOKR, and today’s announcement is additional proof of how we have managed to reshape an entire industry in only a few months.JOKR has come – not only on people’s doorsteps but also in their daily lives. Our clients in Latin America and the United States adore our grocery delivery service, with [gross merchandise volume (GMV)] increasing by 15% on average every week. With today’s investment, we’ll be able to keep our pledge to create the ideal shopping experience.”
The company did not provide exact growth data but did indicate that its gross merchandise volume is increasing at a rate of 15% per week on average, and that customer retention is high, with over 50% of new customers coming from organic sources. JOKR has also expanded its warehouse hub network, currently running 200 in 15 cities including New York, Mexico City, and Sao Paulo, with some of them achieving operational profitability, according to Wenzel.
JOKR was founded in March in New York and is led by the same leadership team that founded foodpanda and helped deliver Delivery Hero to success. Ralf Wenzel, the company’s founder and CEO, as well as four other co-founders, all personally invested in the round.
