What to Know About Kroger’s Online Marketplace

As the e-commerce landscape continues to grow, The Kroger Co.’s new online marketplace has emerged as an exciting opportunity for brands and sellers that are looking to expand their operations beyond Amazon.

The nation’s largest grocery retailer recently launched its digital marketplace, which helped the company earn over $11 billion in e-commerce sales last year, plus the No. 9 spot on the list of top U.S. e-commerce retailers.

Expected to double its digital sales by the end of 2023, Kroger is quickly becoming a major e-marketplace player that brands and sellers may want to explore as the platform evolves in the coming years.

Opportunities for Brands and Sellers on Kroger

According to Feedvisor’s 2021 survey of more than 1,000 U.S. brands, Kroger emerged as the second most popular channel that brands would consider selling on outside of Amazon, with Google Shopping taking the No. 1 spot. 

As 53% of brands believe e-marketplaces are their greatest source of opportunity, it is clear that the current shift towards online shopping will continue to fuel Kroger’s growing digital presence.

The grocery store giant hopes to attract more brands and third-party sellers through what it claims are next-level data and insights that are unrivaled by Kroger’s competition.

Although it is unclear how much businesses can benefit from the online marketplace’s technology, what is certain is that Kroger plans to invest more into its digital operations going forward.

The company recently opened a new 375,000-square-foot customer fulfillment center, which combines “vertical integration, machine learning, and robotics with affordable, friendly, and fast delivery service.”

It will be interesting to see how much more efficient Kroger’s delivery system will be for both the company and its vendors as they explore new ways to integrate automation within their processes.