Grocemania, an on-demand grocery delivery app has today announced the launch of its first dark store in Kingston upon Thames, Greater London,
This is the first of two dark stores being launched by the grocery delivery app this summer. A second store in Twickenham will be opened in early July.
Launched in 2018, Grocemania’s app and online platform allows consumers to buy and get groceries delivered in minutes from of Nisa, Londis, Budgens, McColls and Spar stores located in BP petrol stations, as well as independent retailers like local butchers, fishmongers and producers.
Both will be launched as part of the companies new initiative, GM Local. The initiative highlights Grocemania’s commitment to support local producers by digitally connecting them to customers. Users in the same area as their local Dark Stores will be able to receive their deliveries within 10 to 15 minutes.
The two dark stores feed into Grocemania’s wider mission to support local independent retailers. The company’s first two hubs will be powered by Kingston and Twickenham Markets, supplying users with quality food supplies.
Over 300 retailers and producers have already signed up to the app and are trading independently across the UK. The Company is also working tight with big FMCG brands like PepsiCo and Unilever to bring app users discounts on a variety of products.
Grocemania has developed a first in the UK multi-vendor marketplace with tailored pricing for every retailer and its own stock control system and now also invested in state-of-the-art Point of Sale (PoS) technology to be used within the dark store itself, to facilitate stock management, process transactions more rapidly, and create a more efficient customer journey.
Grocemania is set to expand its dark stores beyond London later this year, with plans to open 16 further stores across England by the end of 2021 in partnership with Valli Forecourts.
This expansion follows Grocemania’s successful funding round earlier this year. The company raised £173k in its latest pre-Seed round, almost doubling its initial target of £100k.
Askar Bulegenov, founder and director of Grocemania, said, “Dark stores have disrupted the food delivery sector in recent years. They offer local stores a more cost-effective storage system, while typically providing consumers with a quicker, more efficient service.
“It was a logical next step, therefore, that Grocemania would expand into this exciting space – we are constantly looking for ways to improve and innovate our offering, and our dark store expansion strategy will help us do just that.
'With an even quicker delivery service for users, and superior stock management technology, we are confident that our plan will allow us to better support both local businesses, and satisfy the needs of our valued app users.”
Grocemania’s on-demand delivery service began with operations in London, Bristol and Brighton throughout 2020, and has successfully launched in Sheffield, Leeds, Cardiff and Birmingham within the past six months.