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Albertsons has new plans for Plated

Meal kit banner to join Own Brands roster with end of subscription service

Russell Redman

November 12, 2019

3 Min Read
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Just over two years after its acquisition by Albertsons Cos., Plated is being transformed from a meal kit provider into a private brand.

Albertsons said Tuesday it aims to phase out the Plated subscription service at the end of this month. Instead, Plated will become an “in-house culinary brand” on the Boise, Idaho-based grocer’s expanding roster of own brands. Plans call for new Plated products to roll out to additional stores next year.

“Our vision for Plated includes an expanded set of products that goes far beyond a dinner-based solution and into a comprehensive in-house culinary brand,” Geoff White, executive vice president and chief merchandising officer at Albertsons, said in a statement. “With a broader scope of offerings, we see Plated solving customer demands around convenience, lifestyle and cooking experience, while adding yet another layer of interest to our in-store journey.”

Plated in-store salmon kit_Albertsons natl rollout.jpg

Albertsons acquired Plated in September 2017 in a reported deal of about $200 million. The supermarket giant noted that the move to bring Plated under its “Own Brands” umbrella comes after extensive testing of the meal kits’ performance at Safeway stores in Northern California. Results showed that customers who buy Plated products are more likely to have families and a larger-than-average shopping basket.

Related:Plated scales back retail distribution

“Plated’s brand appeals to our most loyal and highest value customers, especially those that skew towards convenient, fresh and organic products,” according to White.

Plated products will be sold online through stores’ current e-commerce platforms — including via same-day delivery and Drive Up & Go pickup — as the brand’s lineup grows, Albertsons said.

The Own Brands marketing and product development team will manage the expansion of Plated into a “holistic home meal solution,” Albertsons said, adding that the team has created billion-dollar brands such as O Organics, Lucerne, Signature Select and Signature Café.

Own Brands are a pillar of Albertson’s strategic growth plan. The retailer’s private-label penetration stood at 25.3% as of its fiscal 2019 second quarter, up from 23% in fiscal 2017. In 2018, 1,100 new Own Brand products were launched.

At the time Albertsons acquired New York-based Plated, meal kits were a burgeoning market, as on-the-go consumers sought a quick and convenient way to prepare a full meal for two or more people. However, the space has since migrated from a subscription to a retail distribution model, with shoppers looking more toward their local supermarket to buy meal kits as needed rather than signing up for a plan supplying them on a schedule.

Related:Plated CEO Josh Hix steps down

Albertsons announced the national rollout of Plated meal kits to its stores in April 2018, at which time the retailer had the kits in 20 Safeway stores in Northern California and 20 Jewel-Osco stores in the Chicago area. The company said Plated kits would be available in select Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Jewel-Osco, Shaw’s, Acme, Tom Thumb, Randalls, United Supermarkets, Pavilions, Star Market and Haggen stores by the year’s end.

Yet it became clear that changes were afoot this past January, when Plated co-founder and CEO Josh Hix left the company. At the time, Plated meal kits were sold at more than 300 Albertsons Cos. stores, and there were five Plated fulfillment centers. Then in March, Albertsons said it was shrinking retail distribution of Plated products as the company reassessed its in-store market strategy for the brand.

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

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