San Francisco-based Instacart, an online grocery platform, has appointed Meredith Kopit Levien, president and CEO of The New York Times Co., and Lily Sarafan, co-founder and executive chair of Home Care Assistance, to the company’s board of directors.
Kopit Levien helped lead The Times‘ transformation to become a fast-growing, digital business. She is a seasoned executive who brings deep experience building and leading cross-functional teams working on the challenges of scaling subscriptions and creating engaging direct-to-consumer products.
Sarafan brings to Instacart deep expertise in reimagining and operating in highly complex industries, while creating and advising leading consumer marketplaces.
“We’re proud to welcome Meredith and Lily to Instacart’s Board of Directors,” said Fidji Simo, CEO of Instacart. “Meredith’s expertise and passion lies in launching and scaling digital products with leading subscription models. Her unique perspective will serve as a guiding force as we continue to enhance our service and deliver even more value to customers, particularly through our own membership offering, Instacart Express.
“Lily is exceptional at building at-scale, sustainable businesses in complex industries. She brings a deep passion for building consumer marketplaces that infuse technology into everyday tasks to make them more accessible and affordable, as well as invaluable experience supporting a community of thousands of frontline workers. Both Meredith and Lily, along with the rest of the Instacart Board, will be instrumental as we continue to serve as a retail enablement platform and drive more value for our partners, customers and shoppers,” Simo said.
Prior to joining The New York Times in 2013, Kopit Levien was at Forbes for five years, where she held various roles, including publisher and chief revenue officer. She is a Henry Crown Fellow at the Aspen Institute.
“I’m excited to join Instacart’s Board of Directors,” she said. “With more than 20 years working on the business of journalism, I’ve had a first-hand look at the digital evolution of an industry that’s been essential in people’s daily lives for centuries. Similarly, grocery is in the midst of an important evolution of its own, and I believe Instacart can play a critical role in the digital transformation of their industry. I look forward to joining the board and working with Fidji and the rest of the leadership team.”
Sarafan has led Home Care Assistance from its earliest days as a startup to an industry leader in senior care, with more than 10,000 employees across North America. She has been instrumental in deploying a new, uniquely integrated approach to aging – supported by a community of more than 10,000 frontline caregivers – that has completely reimagined senior care. As a result, Home Care Assistance has been recognized as one of the 50 fastest-growing women-owned companies worldwide.
An appointee to the California Governor’s Alzheimer’s Task Force, Sarafan serves in various other leadership roles to advance precision health and wellness, economic development and entrepreneurship, and informed civic engagement.
“Instacart has unlocked an innovative, sustainable model that supports the entire grocery industry – from retailers and brands to customers and shoppers – and I’m proud to join its board of directors,” said Sarafan. “As a customer, I’ve experienced firsthand how Instacart can reshape the way households access and discover new foods. As an entrepreneur, I know that driving innovation in an industry that’s an integral – and often deeply personal – part of everyone’s life is not a simple task.
“I’ve been impressed by Instacart’s role as a chief ally for the broader grocery industry, elevating the experience for retailers and customers alike. I look forward to supporting the team as Instacart continues to make online grocery shopping a part of the everyday rhythm for more people across North America.”
Kopit Levien and Sarafan join Instacart’s board, which also includes Simo; Apoorva Mehta, Instacart founder and executive chairman; Barry McCarthy, former CFO of both Spotify and Netflix; Daniel Sundheim, founder and CIO of D1 Capital Partners; Frank Slootman, chairman and CEO of Snowflake; Michael Moritz, managing member at Sequoia Capital; and Jeff Jordan, managing partner at Andreessen Horowitz.
Instacart today partners with more than 700 national, regional and local retailers, including unique brand names, to offer delivery and pickup services from more than 65,000 stores across more than 5,500 cities in North America. Instacart is available to more than 85 percent of U.S. households and 90 percent of Canadian households.
