Grocery Catering

The delivery provider has integrated new technology on its app to simplify the ordering and delivery of catering orders from supermarkets, a channel the company said is growing swiftly.

Customers can now order catering from the grocery store and have it delivered via the Instacart app, the delivery provider announced Thursday.

Traditionally, grocery catering has been handled in an old-school fashion, with grocers managing these orders on spreadsheets or with pen and paper. And customers have typically placed their large-format orders by calling the store or walking in.

“Catering represents one of the highest-margin categories for grocers, driving meaningful incremental growth for their business as consumer demand increases,” VP of Product Jeanette Barlow said in a statement. “In the first half of 2022, we’ve seen a nearly 20% increase in customers searching for ‘catering’ on Instacart compared to the same period last year.”

The integration with FoodStorm allows grocers to set up a digital catering offering directly on their Instacart app storefront to provide online ordering and delivery. Catering customers can select next-day delivery or they can schedule a delivery or pickup up to a week in advance, the company said.