[ballenf]

I would guess that grocery stores have been hesitant to implement any new model which allows customers to avoid the high margin checkout item goods and high margin prepared foods. The web order / quick pickup model shows they are slowly coming around in some ways, however.

For the model you describe to work, they'd have to charge quite a bit more for the ingredients that one would pay simply buying them yourself (or, again, totally forgo the prepared food high margins). Premium prices for "ingredients + recipe card" would trigger price inflation complaints from mainstream shoppers who aren't comparing the option to blue apron but taking an extra 15 minutes to get the items themselves.

What's that term for the profits an established player has to sacrifice to compete in a new market?

[ceejayoz]

These are high-margin prepared foods.

Wegmans, for example, sells pre-chopped, single-portion portions of steaks, vegetables, grains, etc. (even pasta - pre-boiled angel hair at $9.99/lb that you could get for $0.79 in a box!) as well as ready-to-cook meals that you just throw into the oven/pan and follow a few simple directions.

They also offer "personal shopping" services, where they'll pick out groceries and you just pull your car up... and they're testing out an Instacart partnership at the moment for home delivery.

Grocery stores are on it.

[dmix]

I hate when companies don't innovate in an effort to protect old business models. That's why we're stuck with so much backwards services and the only innovation comes from mobile apps.

More often than not it will bring more people to your grocery store who would otherwise not come. Plus they are coming to the store already so it's incentivizing them to come in and buy other stuff while they are at it.

Sadly most companies wait until it's too late when they are being eaten by competition, while they were busy worrying about 'cannibalism'.