Instacart revamps FoodStorm order management system for holidays

Instacart is introducing several new FoodStorm features developed to help grocers manage high holiday order volumes in their stores.

The grocery technology company is adding new capabilities to FoodStorm, the order management system (OMS) it purchased in October 2021, designed to help store associates manage pickup orders, monitor payment statuses, and accurately handle items sold by weight, such as Thanksgiving turkeys, Hanukkah briskets or Christmas hams.

FoodStorm also now enables store associates to obtain access to customer order information by scanning a barcode, which instantly displays the corresponding order on a mobile device. In addition, customers have the option to settle their bills upon pickup.

“The holiday season is just around the corner, and with it comes the annual surge in prepared foods orders that often overwhelms grocers,” Rob Hill, GM at Instacart, said in a corporate blog post. “To tackle this challenge, many retailers have turned to FoodStorm to efficiently manage high-volume orders like Thanksgiving turkeys, full holiday meals and custom party platters. Numerous retailers have onboarded over the past few months to prepare for the holidays, joining hundreds that already use FoodStorm to power their fresh departments, streamlining order fulfillment and modernizing holiday inventory tracking methods. This year, customers can enjoy their holiday meals and catering packages from their favorite retailers, all made possible through FoodStorm.”

FoodStorm – an overview

FoodStorm technology streamlines the manual process of customers calling in or placing in-store orders for prepared food by enabling multi-channel order (e-commerce, phone or in-store kiosk) management payment and fulfillment.

The solution also integrates with a large variety of third-party systems, including POS solutions, and offers CRM capabilities that help grocers collect feedback, market their offerings, and leverage promotional features. Instacart made FoodStorm a part of Connected Stores — a bundle of new and existing Instacart Platform technologies intended to help grocers build a unified, seamless and personalized experience —  online and in-store, in September 2022.

In February 2023, FoodStorm began supporting items sold by weight, including all fresh food and prepared items typically found at deli and meat counters. Instacart followed up in June 2023 by enabling direct omnichannel fulfillment of made-to-order items via FoodStorm.