Regional supermarket chains used to dominate grocery sales because they were close to where customers lived.
When I first got my own apartment on Long Island, back in the late 1990s, I shopped at the ShopRite that was on my way home from work. If I was home and needed groceries, I went to the smaller, locally-owned chain that was closest to my house.
The internet was not an option because it mostly didn’t exist yet, and delivery was limited to pizza. You couldn’t get groceries delivered, as DoorDash, Uber Eats, Instacart, and the various services that bring groceries to your house in as little as an hour, weren’t even ideas on a notepad yet.
Now, when I need groceries, I can drive to the Publix that’s basically across the street, hit the Aldi that’s a little farther away, or drive a few miles to Whole Foods. If, however, I don’t feel like leaving the house, I can order from any of the services mentioned above or from Walmart, Amazon, or Target directly.
Technology has changed the grocery business, Food Industry Association (FMI) Vice President Doug Baker wrote.
“At FMI, I’ve had a front-row seat to how technology is reshaping our industry. Not with big fanfare, but with practical tools that are helping retailers and suppliers work smarter, faster, and more collaboratively. We’re no longer talking about tech as a back-office tool. It’s now central to growth, resilience, and shopper loyalty,” he shared.
It’s a brave new world, and now Kroger and Albertsons are making moves that put technology at the center of grocery.
Kroger and Albertsons make key tech hires
FMI, according to Baker, has a clear focus in helping the industry make changes.
“Our focus is on accelerating transformation across the supply chain, because real-time data, automation, and AI aren’t optional; they’re the new baseline for success. Here’s where I’m seeing technology make the biggest difference,” he added.
Now, both Kroger and Albertsons have made C-suite hires designed to give them an in-house technology leader. Albertsons arguably scored the bigger hire.
- Albertsons Companies, Inc. has named Meg Whitman to the newly created role of executive chair of the company’s Board of Directors, according to a press release.
- Whitman has been building and reimagining companies for more than 40 years. She served as president and chief executive officer of eBay, Inc. from 1998 to 2008, as the company grew from $30 million to more than $8 billion in annual revenue and defined personal e-commerce.
- From 2011 to 2018, Whitman led Hewlett-Packard and transformed the company’s performance in computing and information technology services.
- In addition to leading the Albertsons Cos. board, Whitman will serve as an operations and strategic advisor to CEO Susan Morris and her senior team.
- Whitman’s experience will be particularly relevant as Morris continues to streamline the operating structure around AI technologies and a more consistent customer experience across stores and digital channels.
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Kroger, however, also landed a big name, albeit one that has operated a little more behind the scenes.
- The Kroger Co. has hired former Walmart technology leader Mark Ibbotson, who will join the company as executive vice president and chief store operations officer, effective September 14.
- Ibbotson began his retail career in the United Kingdom, including roles at Sainsbury’s before joining Asda in 2004 and eventually became its COO. In that role, Ibbotson oversaw the performance of hundreds of stores, drove meaningful improvements in efficiency and cost, expanded the company’s e-commerce capabilities, and introduced pickup and drive-through, according to a press release.
- In 2015, Ibbotson joined Walmart U.S. as senior vice president of innovation, with a mandate to simplify store operations and introduce new technologies to improve the customer experience and associate productivity.
- At Walmart, his portfolio encompassed store operations, real estate, asset protection and key elements of Walmart’s digital transformation, including the architecture and launch of the grocery eCommerce business.
- During his tenure, Ibbotson helped lead the rollout of the company’s e-commerce platform, including pickup and delivery services that became a cornerstone of Walmart’s omnichannel strategy.
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Traditional grocery chains need to adapt to changing tech
Thomas Paulson, head of market insights at Advan Research, shared comments on Kroger’s business in advance of its Sept. 11 earnings report.
“We also focus on mid-week trips vs. the total, because if Kroger’s convenience attributes begin to have less hold on households, watch out below. Moreover, this is the purchase occasion that Amazon same-day perishables, Walmart delivery, Costco delivery, etc. are after. On this front, there was slippage, with the mid-week visit trend softer than the total-week trend,” he wrote.
That’s a legitimate fear, as data from McKinsey’s The State of Grocery North America 2026 show a fractured consumer.
“Competition is becoming more mission-based. Consumers are no longer shopping one way for all needs but splitting trips across value stock-ups, fresh and prepared-food occasions, convenience-led delivery, wellness-driven baskets, and fill-in missions,” the study showed.
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Regional brands, however, still have some advantages.
“National players continue to benefit from scale, value, innovation, and digital capabilities, while regional players remain powerful where they have distinctive fresh, prepared, and in-store propositions,” McKinsey added.
The research firm sees technology as the foundation for chains like Kroger and Albertsons retaining, or growing, their market share.
“AI has the potential to fundamentally reshape how consumers shop and how grocers operate. While only select use cases are delivering value, the technology has rapidly moved up the agenda for grocers as a potential operating system capable of increasingly connecting customer demand, inventory, labor, fulfillment, and store execution into one integrated system,” the report shared.
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