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0 pointsk-mcgrady12y ago0 comments

Interesting. I wonder if that's really enough. When it comes to groceries the vast majority of people shop based on price. Instacart charges a markup on every item purchased. In this market people seem to value price over convenience especially when the convenience difference is small.

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veemjeem12y ago· 2 in thread

I don't agree with that sentiment. I think your pattern detector is only taking in account on how grocery shopping is currently done. When you introduce something new into the system, it may not adhere to the same rules. There are many cases when convenience will trump price. Say you need to buy items from 10 different stores. I would rather use a service that goes to 10 different stores for me, than have myself drive to each store to hunt down each item.

When I use amazon prime, I'm very aware that the prices are sometimes more expensive than a generic brand, but I am willing to pay the small price difference for the 2-day shipping convenience. A study was released on amazon prime shoppers that showed prime customers are less affected by price. The convenience of getting something with 2-day shipping, but with a higher price trumped a cheaper item but longer delivery times. People don't always go for the lowest cost item.

k-mcgradyOP12y ago

>> "Say you need to buy items from 10 different stores. I would rather use a service that goes to 10 different stores for me, than have myself drive to each store to hunt down each item."

I guess it depends how you shop! :) Supermarkets are there to give you the lowest prices and eliminate the need to go to more than 1 store. But I understand where you're coming from. I guess we'll have to wait and see how it works out.

veemjeem12y ago

Hah, I wish that were true. Supermarkets exist to make money, so they can't stock items that have low demand. If you cook ethnic foods, you'll typically need to visit several stores to buy all the ingredients for your meal.

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