Inflation Has Turned Everyday Shoppers Into Deal Hunters — and Big Tech’s Moving Fast to Catch Them
Inflation has made brand loyalty a luxury many can’t afford. As prices climb and budgets tighten, consumers can’t afford to stay faithful to the brands they once trusted. They’re too busy hunting for relief — any discount, any deal — anywhere they can find it. And that’s exactly the vulnerability Big Tech has been capitalizing on.
Big Tech eats first: With grocery inflation at a two-year high, American families are ditching familiar names and bouncing between platforms to stretch every dollar. AmazonAMZN and UberUBER saw the shift coming and moved fast — rolling out cheaper options, quicker delivery, and loyalty perks designed for more reserved spending. Both companies are betting that cash-strapped shoppers will stick with whoever makes saving feel easiest, and so far, that bet looks spot on.
- Amazon merged its Fresh and Happy Belly brands into Amazon Grocery, a 1K item private label line mostly under $5, sold online and in stores to target cost-conscious shoppers.
- Uber launched Fresh Days with 30% Tuesday discounts on groceries for Uber One members, a 48-hour freshness guarantee, and expanded Aldi delivery across 2.5K+ SNAP-eligible stores.
Instacart’s Empty Aisle
While Amazon and Uber expand aggressively, InstacartCART is struggling to keep up. The company that once owned 70% of third-party grocery delivery in 2022 has seen its share sink to 58% by 2024, as rivals roll out cheaper options backed by massive ecosystems. Its model of partnering with local grocers is breaking down as those same retailers flock to platforms offering speed, scale, and better economics.
- Wedbush downgraded Instacart to Underperform, cutting its price target from $55 to $42 and warning that Amazon’s same-day perishable delivery makes Prime far more attractive than Instacart’s standalone model.
- KrogerKR delivered the bigger blow, expanding its DoorDashDASH partnership to nearly 2.7K stores starting this month — a major loss for Instacart, which relied on Kroger for over 10% of its gross transaction value.
The reckoning: Instacart’s single-lane strategy is starting to buckle under pressure. Amazon can offset grocery losses with profits from cloud and retail, and Uber taps its massive driver and delivery network — but Instacart only has groceries. Its stock is down 12% this year, and analysts warn the worst may not be over as the company burns more cash on incentives and marketing just to hold ground. With Wall Street losing patience, customers spoiled for choice, and no real moat to lean on, Instacart is finding out what happens when you go public without enough depth to keep the sharks out.