With Startup Acquisition Spree, Instacart Spruces up in Advance of IPO

As Instacart gears up to go public, the company is on a spending spree, buying up startups to build out its offerings and make its platform more appealing to potential investors.

For more: Instacart Eyes IPO Before Year’s End, Report Says

This time, the company is setting its sights on small and independent grocers and retailers. The online grocery delivery marketplace announced Wednesday (Sept. 7) the acquisition of Rosie, a company that offers eCommerce solutions for independent grocers, for an undisclosed amount.

The features offered by the startup include website and app building tools, advertising tools and loyalty programs, among others. Through the acquisition, Instacart aims to offer solutions that more specifically address the needs of smaller grocery retailers.

“Local and independent grocers are so important to the grocery ecosystem. They have loyal customers, create meaningful job opportunities and serve as cornerstones of their communities,” Instacart Chief Business Officer Chris Rogers said in a statement. “The Rosie team understands these grocers better than anyone. … Together, we’ll build more technologies that help independent grocers accelerate their pace of innovation so they can continue to compete, grow, and serve their customers however they choose to shop.”

The news comes less than a week after Instacart announced Thursday (Sept. 1) the acquisition of Eversight, a pricing and promotions platform for consumer-packaged goods (CPG) brands and retailers, enabling both to more easily test customized pricing and promotions with individual customers, at scale.

Related: Instacart Acquires Pricing and Promotions Platform Eversight

Zooming out to look at the past 12 months, the company’s acquisitions have included catering software company FoodStorm in October 2021, leading to the integration of the startup’s technology into Instacart’s app announced last month. Also in October 2021, the company announced the acquisition of Caper AI, a company that creates smart carts for checkout-free shopping and computer vision checkout counters for more frictionless self-service.

You may also like: Instacart’s Catering Feature Helps Grocers Challenge Restaurants for Big Orders

Also: Instacart Acquires Smart Cart Creator Caper AI to Power Omnichannel Tech for Grocery Store Customers

Instacart is building out its offerings as it prepares for its coming initial public offering (IPO), which may be coming before the end of the year, according to a report in July. Revenue in the second quarter of the year reportedly grew 39% year over year, while the total number of orders is said to have risen 25%.

Additional details: Instacart Orders, Revenues Climb as Company Prepares IPO

Yet, for all this growth, and for all last year’s acquisitions, the online grocery company has faced challenges in the recent past with investors. Specifically, in July, Bloomberg reported that Capital Group, an Instacart investor, had slashed the delivery firm’s valuation back to $14.7 billion, a significant decrease from Instacart’s calculation of $24 billion.

Read more: Instacart Investor Slashes Grocery Deliverer’s Valuation to $14.7B

Perhaps, by sinking the funds now into acquiring new companies now in an effort to improve its long-term offerings for retailers on the platform, Instacart hopes to show investors it is serious about its future and expects to be relevant for years to come.