Mercato, the online grocery e-commerce platform for independently owned grocery and specialty food stores, is putting its popular Mercato Green annual membership on sale for $1 (a $96 value) on Small Business Saturday. Mercato wants to encourage food shoppers to “shop small” year-round by providing this one-time, 24-hour offer for its delivery membership program on Saturday, Nov. 30.
Mercato Green allows consumers across the U.S. to receive unlimited, free, same-day deliveries from their neighborhood grocery markets and retailers, which in turn, supports their local economy. The company also plants a tree for every order placed by a Mercato Green member.
According to the National Grocers Association, independent supermarket operators alone are responsible for generating $131 billion in sales, 944,000 jobs, $30 billion in wages and $27 billion in taxes each year. However, small grocers today are competing heavily with large online grocery providers such as Amazon and Walmart. Mercato says it levels the playing field for community markets and specialty food purveyors to better compete.
“We got into this business because we believe small businesses and independent grocers, like my dad, empower neighborhoods with economic growth and community connection. Amazon, with over 100 million Prime members, continues to put the pressure on main street retailers, and Mercato Green enables these grocers to fight back,” says Mercato founder and CEO Bobby Brannigan. “On Small Business Saturday, we’re offering Mercato Green memberships, which provide unlimited, free grocery deliveries from independent markets in their communities, at just a dollar for one year. We won’t be making this offer again, so it pays for consumers who love delivery of the freshest produce, meat, fish, baked goods and more to act on Nov.30.”
There are two Mercato Green membership plans. The Neighborhood plan covers deliveries up to three miles from the store and is normally $8/month or $96 per year, and the City plan covers up to 10 miles and is $23/month or $276 per year. Both plans come with a 30-day free trial and provide a deep discount for consumers.
Mercato.com provides an online storefront for independent grocers to list their goods, and consumers can conveniently order fresh foods and pantry staples from stores in their community. Consumers can either have their orders delivered to their doorstep or have them available for pickup, typically within an hour or two. Earlier this year, the company announced a partnership with on-demand food platform DoorDash. With this partnership, Mercato says DoorDash fulfills the majority of its grocery delivery orders from more than 800 independent grocers, bringing low-cost, on-demand delivery to even more shoppers nationwide.
