Kroger aims to boost growth by partnering with ghost kitchens
Kroger aims to boost growth by partnering with ghost kitchens
Grocery chain Kroger reports earnings today. Like many supermarkets, it saw big growth during the pandemic but that’s hard to match now that people are spending less time at home. In August, Kroger announced a new partnership to expand its business in the form of ghost kitchens – restaurants that only do delivery and takeout.
Ghost kitchens like the Kitchen United in Pasadena, California, have become a pandemic success story: You order online or from a bank of kiosks in an otherwise empty storefront.
You can choose between 1, 2, 3, 4, or 24 different restaurant menus, fried chicken, barbecue, tacos, salads, all cooked by one staff, in one kitchen in the back.
Soon, Kroger will bring this model into its stores.
“it actually helps grocery stores and delivery restaurants solve a problem for the other,” said Joel Rampoldt, retail consultant with AlixPartners.
“Grocery stores tend to be in great locations, they’re near where the customers are. But most grocery stores are actually too big, whereas restaurants have the opposite problem,” he said.
Rampoldt said the combination could attract consumers looking for convenience, who may have pulled back a bit on costly deliveries.
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