Albertsons Cos. and venture capitalist Greycroft have created a fund that could put as much as $50 million toward developing technologies for the grocery space.
In the partnership, Albertsons brings the grocery expertise and Greycroft contributes investment knowledge and tech connections, according to a news release.
Albertsons already considers itself a leader in e-commerce, having placed an emphasis on home delivery, and it wants to further strengthen that position.
“Albertsons Cos. is committed to meeting customers wherever and however they like to shop, and part of that is being at the forefront of the tremendous innovation our industry has seen over the last five years,” Shane Sampson, chief marketing and merchandising officer, said in the release. “As we saw with our recent acquisition of Plated, Albertsons Cos. has the capital, scale and expertise to power future growth of the most promising emerging businesses and technologies across the food and grocery space. We are thrilled to be partnering with Greycroft, whose investment acumen and relationships are positioned to be key drivers of our success.”
Grocers around the U.S. have been adding pickup and delivery services at a frenzied pace, either building their own infrastructure or joining forces with companies like Instacart and Shipt. Kroger just announced earlier this week the first phase of its new Kroger Ship delivery program, which currently does not include fresh food but will in the future, according to a spokeswoman for the company.