The Great Grocery Culling Will Occur
Walmart is talking a good game now and investing in the right things. Pace of innovation is the worry. If that stays high, they will succeed in the grocery market.
Other grocers beware. The great culling is coming soon.
Caught between Instacart and Walmart, the rest of the grocery industry is being squeezed. Not enough capital to invest in digital, not enough profitability and growth to show in the results. Can't ignore Instacart due to volume, can't build a better experience, participate in their ad dollars, all add up to one thing:
The number of mid-market grocers will decline in upcoming years. I can't get around this phenomenon. Grocers without significant ad revenue and without financial services revenue will struggle to keep pace because the return on those investment dollars will simply not be there.
It is not enough to be a great grocer. Yes, there will be exceptions at the margins, but the squishy middle of the market will feel increasing pressure.
