DoorDash was once again the most downloaded US food and drink app in 2021, racking up 37.0 million downloads, 5% fewer than in 2020. McDonald’s jumped to second on the list with 24.0 million downloads, 33% more than the year prior. Meanwhile, Uber Eats dropped to third place with 21.0 million downloads.

On this episode of our new Behind the Numbers show, Reimagining Retail, our analyst Andrew Lipsman hosts Russ Dieringer, founder of Stratably, to discuss intrigue in the executive ranks at key retail media platforms Amazon, Walmart, and Instacart. They also rank their top four retail media trends for 2022.

Instacart’s delivery ambitions extend beyond grocery: Ahead of a potential IPO, the grocery delivery giant expands its product offerings to include prepared food delivery.

The instant grocery delivery market is headed toward consolidation: The extremely high cost of 15-minute delivery in the US has startups built on the promise pivoting to longer delivery times and other services.

Brands eagerly jump on the retail media network bandwagon: As access to customer data becomes a priority for brands, retailers see an opportunity to diversify their revenue streams.

Our annual lookahead for Canada highlights some growth areas for brand marketers as well as the mediascape that’s evolving to serve them.

We expect retail media advertising to be one of the fastest-growing segments of digital advertising in the US at over 31%. But this is just one of the five key trends that we predict will most shape the retail landscape in the year ahead.

When unexpected market trends put more focus on health and wellness, The Vitamin Shoppe placed their customers center stage. Watch Industry Voices: Spotlight on CPG with Nadina Guglielmetti, marketing executive at The Vitamin Shoppe, to hear how precise investments in the customer journey can lead to big payoffs—in awareness, engagement, and credibility.

Starbucks is reportedly considering cashierless cafes using Amazon’s Just Walk Out tech, and Instacart will acquire smart cart provider Caper AI.

Gorillas’ $1 billion raise underscores the market opportunity for last-mile and fast grocery services: The US and EU markets are both heating up, putting pressure on Amazon and Instacart—but is the category sustainable?

Walmart’s GoLocal delivery service will need smaller customers to be sustainable: The Home Depot is a good start, but it’s big enough that it’s likely to take delivery in-house in the near future.

Four years from now, eMarketer estimates that mcommerce will account for over 10.4% of all retail sales in the US. To take advantage of that growth, retailers will need to double down on their efforts to find and serve a mobile audience.

High-level departures spell more trouble for Facebook: The company’s long-time CTO will step down next year as Facebook addresses a flurry of negative press.

Delivery intermediaries like DoorDash, Instacart, Shipt, and Uber will see strong US grocery sales through 2025 even as their growth in the category declines.

Retail media advertising is the next big trend in digital advertising, driven by the surge in ecommerce spending and brands’ desire to target consumers close to the point of purchase.

US digital grocery sales grew 63.9% year over year during the pandemic in 2020. In 2021, sales will reach $122.39 billion. This report details the emerging trends in digital grocery and the implications for key players in the space.

Before the pandemic, 84% of US adults shopped for groceries in stores, but as of June 2021, that number's slipped down to 70%.

Walmart edged out Amazon in 2020 as the leading US grocery ecommerce retailer. We expect Walmart to continue outselling Amazon in grocery ecommerce sales through our 2023 projections.

Instacart's growth exploded in 2020, with sales increasing by 229.7% over 2019, for a total of $23.42 billion. But by the end of 2021, the grocery delivery company's sales will grow by a comparatively small 11.3%, which is in line with market norms.

In the US, three apps accounted for 86% of online engagement with alcohol delivery between March and May 2021, according to ShareThis.