Instacart raises another $150M • Hacker News Board

Re: Instacart raises another $150M

#11

Post by tehwebguy » Thu, Apr 05, 2018, 11:23 PM UTC

atwebb wrote: post #2

My wife just noticed Costco is offering same day shipping, I thought it odd that they could get the logistics down and it turned out to be Instacart. I have personally used it but might now so I don't have to brave the traffic/chaos that a suburban Costco can be. That being said I haven't heard great things about IC in my area. It, admittedly just now, strikes me that taking away the headache of Costco would be prett…

Ralphs & Vons (both Kroger brands) offering the same in LA near me

Re: Instacart raises another $150M

#12

Post by jstarfish » Thu, Apr 05, 2018, 11:32 PM UTC

whymsicalburito wrote: post #10

stevenwoo wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Finding a parking space at that particular Costco is ridiculous within about 30 minutes of the store opening.

Is there really a parking problem, or is it more of a walking problem? I've yet to see a costco parking lot that doesn't have tons of empty spaces if you're willing to walk 2 minutes

Parking problem. My local Costco is perpetually full front to back unless you go within 30 minutes of opening or closing, and parking in a neighboring business lot will get you booted.

This is very much a regional problem. Others I've been to in the US have half-empty lots the size of football fields.

Re: Instacart raises another $150M

#13

Post by mattbeckman » Thu, Apr 05, 2018, 11:34 PM UTC

whymsicalburito wrote: post #9

atwebb wrote: post #2

My wife just noticed Costco is offering same day shipping, I thought it odd that they could get the logistics down and it turned out to be Instacart. I have personally used it but might now so I don't have to brave the traffic/chaos that a suburban Costco can be. That being said I haven't heard great things about IC in my area. It, admittedly just now, strikes me that taking away the headache of Costco would be prett…

Are the costco prices based on their warehouse pricing or their online pricing? I've seen lots of items that are up to 50% cheaper in the store than what they advertise online.

We've done it exactly once (a month ago), and my wife noted that the products we often get were 25-30% more expensive via delivery.

Re: Instacart raises another $150M

#14

Post by wasd » Thu, Apr 05, 2018, 11:37 PM UTC

ejlangev wrote: post #8

I haven't had much luck using Instacart at all. At my last job we would order normal sized bottled water for our office fairly regularly and 9/10 times they would bring the tiny bottles. Also they claim on their website that "Fresh produce picked perfectly" but this couldn't be further from the truth. The produce you get seems to be chosen at random and is often mediocre or bad. Seems likely that the shoppers are und…

"Picked perfectly" was appalling to me. Literally the reason we cancelled was because that there was no concern for what was purchased. We regularly had the wrong brands, claims that store didn't have the items (they 100% did) or the produce was extremely over/under ripe.

Re: Instacart raises another $150M

#15

Post by subpixel » Thu, Apr 05, 2018, 11:48 PM UTC

Last time this happened I said Instacart is a middleman and I didn't see their opportunity to break out and be a market maker.

But I just realized a potential endgame: Instacart will be Amazon Prime (the subscription delivery business) without the need to be Amazon (the retail, global-scale logistics, and marketing company).

Do I want to pay 30% extra on every individual order from local stores to have Instacart handle the delivery? No.

But would I consider paying something like Amazon Prime fees, every month, to have 'free' delivery on orders over $100 from my grocery store, Costco, Trader Joe's, pet store, J. Crew, etc? Very likely.

Re: Instacart raises another $150M

#16

Post by spraak » Fri, Apr 06, 2018, 12:08 AM UTC

subpixel wrote: post #15

Last time this happened I said Instacart is a middleman and I didn't see their opportunity to break out and be a market maker. But I just realized a potential endgame: Instacart will be Amazon Prime (the subscription delivery business) without the need to be Amazon (the retail, global-scale logistics, and marketing company). Do I want to pay 30% extra on every individual order from local stores to have Instacart hand…

I don't understand, you said you wouldn't use Instacart, but do you see them surviving?

Re: Instacart raises another $150M

#17

Post by spraak » Fri, Apr 06, 2018, 12:10 AM UTC

To me this looks like investors are wanting Instacart to bulk up in preparation for competition [1] from Amazon

[1] Amazon has already had their Prime Now service, but I mean their incorporation of Whole Foods into it.

Re: Instacart raises another $150M

#18

Post by subpixel » Fri, Apr 06, 2018, 12:15 AM UTC

spraak wrote: post #16

subpixel wrote: post #15

Last time this happened I said Instacart is a middleman and I didn't see their opportunity to break out and be a market maker. But I just realized a potential endgame: Instacart will be Amazon Prime (the subscription delivery business) without the need to be Amazon (the retail, global-scale logistics, and marketing company). Do I want to pay 30% extra on every individual order from local stores to have Instacart hand…

I don't understand, you said you wouldn't use Instacart, but do you see them surviving?

I said I would probably not use Instacart in one set of circumstances, but probably would in another. Especially if the perceived value was higher.

Re: Instacart raises another $150M

#19

Post by WizardOfNomaha » Fri, Apr 06, 2018, 12:19 AM UTC

subpixel wrote: post #18

spraak wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't understand, you said you wouldn't use Instacart, but do you see them surviving?

I said I would probably not use Instacart in one set of circumstances, but probably would in another. Especially if the perceived value was higher.

I think this is better stated as "consumer behavior does not always map to MY logic". Paying for Instacart is a logical decision for some people (or at least they think it's a logical decision). I would never be a customer but that doesn't inherently mean it's a bad business or people that are customers aren't being logical.

Re: Instacart raises another $150M

#20

Post by jonknee » Fri, Apr 06, 2018, 12:40 AM UTC

subpixel wrote: post #15

Last time this happened I said Instacart is a middleman and I didn't see their opportunity to break out and be a market maker. But I just realized a potential endgame: Instacart will be Amazon Prime (the subscription delivery business) without the need to be Amazon (the retail, global-scale logistics, and marketing company). Do I want to pay 30% extra on every individual order from local stores to have Instacart hand…

Prime is such a success because it triggers more Amazon purchases, such a hypothetical offering from Instacart would trigger more money losing deliveries for Instacart.