Buyk and Gopuff, two rivals in the super-fast grocery delivery market, both unveiled new private label lines that include some food items.
Buyk, which launched last year in New York City and has since expanded to Chicago, first began offering items under the Buyk label in December, and has been adding new items weekly, James Walker, CEO of Buyk, told SFA News Daily. The company currently has about 12 private label products available, and plans to add more specialty food items in the future, he said.
“As we expand, gourmet and specialty food items will become an important part of Buyk’s private label offering,” Walker said. “We are really excited for some of the ultra-premium foods and boldly unique flavors we have planned – these are items that frankly won’t be available in the virtual storefronts of our category contemporaries.”
Buyk’s initial private label assortment includes coffee, artisan bread, pastries and snacks such as ice cream, chocolates, and candy.
“We have ambitious plans for our private label development, with the primary goal being to create emotive products that resonate with and are loved by our customers,” Walker said. “Our goal is for private label to comprise around 40 percent of our total product mix by the end of 2022.”
In addition to its private label expansion, Buyk unveiled an exclusive partnership with Pat LaFrieda Meat Purveyors to offer beef, poultry and other meat products, beginning in February. It is one of several partnerships with name brands that Buyk has in the works, Walker said.
Buyk was founded by Rodion Shishkov and Slava Bocharov, who co-founded and ran Samokat, one of Europe’s leading ultrafast grocery delivery services. The company touts delivery within 15 minutes via bicycle from a network of dark stores.
Meanwhile, Buyk rival Gopuff, which was founded in 2013 and also entered New York City last year, unveiled two new private label brands this week.
The company’s Basically brand is making its debut with bottled water, cleaning products, batteries, paper products, cutlery and food storage, while its Basically, Amazing snack-food line is rolling out with pretzels, nuts, trail mix, popcorn and snack mix during the next few weeks, Gopuff said.
The company said it is using consumer trend data, surveys and other research to develop products, flavors and pack sizes to suit its customers’ needs and tastes. For example, the company launched its private label nut products with “big and bold” varieties, including Habanero BBQ Almonds and Everything Seasoned Cashews, instead of traditional roasted and salted varieties.
Gopuff also said it plans to introduce additional private label brands later this year.
“After over 8 years of delivering instant needs, we truly understand what our loyal customers look for in everyday essentials — insights that have enabled us to create product lines designed specifically for them,” said Daniel Folkman, senior vice president of business at Gopuff, in a statement.
Jessica Glendenning, formerly head of merchandising at Brandless and a 15-year veteran of Target, joined Gopuff last year to lead the company’s private label operations. The company also named Sonia Eschenauer, who is also a veteran of Brandless and Target, as director of private label merchandising, and Bri Waldoch, who also previously worked in Target’s private label operations, as senior merchant of private label at Gopuff.
Gopuff operates micro-fulfillment centers in more than 1,000 markets in North America and Europe, offering delivery of grocery essentials in 30 minutes for a flat fee of $1.95.
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