Today in Food Commerce: Toast Acquires Sling; Grocers Seek Direct Delivery Options

Today in food commerce, restaurant technology company Toast acquires employee management solutions provider Sling, and supermarkets turn to white-label alternatives to third-party aggregators. Plus, Instacart announces new features to attract and retain gig workers.

Grocery Sales Shaping Walmart’s Last-Mile Evolution

For the two biggest players in retail, grocery may well be the defining category that determines how the last mile evolves. As reported by PYMNTS, the battle is a pitched one, as Walmart and Amazon joust day in and day out for consumers’ mindshare and wallet share. As we noted, too, Amazon has been investing heavily in its yearslong bid to build out logistics and its Subscribe & Save program.

Grocers Turn to White-Label Solutions to Capture Instacart’s Wallet Share

There was a time when grocers hoping to make their offerings available online, especially those without the resources to build out an entire in-house delivery business, had few options other than relying on third-party marketplaces such as Instacart. Now, however, as grocers’ digital needs have continued even in a post-lockdown world, online grocery businesses have been challenging Instacart’s hold on the category with white-label alternatives.

Toast Acquires Sling as POS Providers Roll Out Full ResTech Stacks

Boston-based restaurant software-as-a-service (SaaS) and point-of-sale (POS) system provider Toast announced Thursday (July 7) that it has acquired Sling, a company that offers employee scheduling and management tools, folding the latter’s features into Toast Payroll and Team Management products, which include payment features.

Grocery Roundup: Instacart Launches New Gig Worker Rewards Program; Food Prices Rise

Instacart announces new shopper rewards, U.K. grocers struggle with inflation, and findings reveal that grocery spending is on the rise.