Instacart (CART) - 2025 Goldman Sachs TMT Conference
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Date: September 10, 2025, 6:08 PM GMT
Management Present:
Chris Rogers – CEO, President & Director
Moderator: Eric James Sheridan – Goldman Sachs, Research Division
Financial Performance
Chris Rogers emphasized Instacart’s strong operating foundation: “Cohorts in 2025 [are] larger than pre-pandemic cohorts. Our retention is up year-to-date year-on-year... order growth, users are up, order frequency is up, Instacart+ engagement is up, paid members are up” .
Advertising revenue grew despite macro uncertainty: “We were very happy in Q2 that we were able to hit our 12% year-on-year on ads and other despite the fact that one of our largest brands pulled back in that quarter” .
Over 1.5 billion orders completed to date; Instacart remains 3x larger than its nearest digital-first competitor .
Strong focus on large baskets: “75% of the sales in grocery and even more of the profits exist in large baskets... this is where we really excel” .
Guidance & Future Trends
Committed to “long-term profitable growth, annual progression of adjusted EBITDA” while reinvesting flexibly for growth .
2025 cohorts retaining better than pre-pandemic, driving confidence in long-term user engagement .
Affordability remains the “#1 reason people churn,” so Instacart is doubling down on retailer pricing parity, loyalty integrations, and expanded delivery options like no-rush and next-day .
Ads & Data: expanding partnerships with Trade Desk, Meta, Google, Roku, NBCU, and Pinterest; recently launched Consumer Insights Portal (CIP) to monetize data .
International expansion opportunities through Wynshop acquisition, opening doors in Europe, Ireland, and Australia .
Competition
Rogers dismissed Amazon’s grocery expansion: “In Amazon’s pilot markets, our GTV growth is in line with overall U.S. growth... we feel very differentiated because of our strength in large baskets... Instacart has 17 million unique SKUs versus a few thousand for Amazon” .
Using Amazon’s moves as a “rallying cry with retailers,” helping partners double down on Instacart’s technology and enterprise suite .
Enterprise Platform
Powers 350+ retailer storefronts including Publix, Costco Same Day, Sprouts; also does fulfillment for Kroger and ALDI .
Caper Carts now live in 100 cities across 15 states, plus pilots with Morrisons (UK) and Kohl’s (Australia). Consumers “love the product and love the experience” .
Retail media (Carrot Ads) becoming a significant revenue driver for retailers; in some cases, ad checks from Instacart surpass SaaS fees .
FoodStorm catering software being adopted by Ahold Delhaize’s U.S. chains .
AI Trends
“AI is part of our DNA... in Q2, 80% of our code was AI-assisted,” boosting engineering velocity by 30% .
Launched Smart Shop personalization engine and Virtual Aisles tailored by household dietary needs .
AI in ads: new recommendation engines, universal campaigns, AI landing pages. Example: new-to-shelf ad pilots showing 6.5x sales lift .
AI embedded across functions: legal, sales, marketing, operations, engineering .
Capital Allocation
Three-pronged approach:
Reinvest in growth initiatives.
Maintain flexibility for strategic M&A (e.g., Wynshop, Caper, FoodStorm acquisitions).
Opportunistic share repurchases – $205M repurchased in H1 2025 .
10 Notable Quotes
“Affordability is probably the biggest unlock to grocery adoption... it’s the #1 reason that people churn off of Instacart.”
“We are the category leader... 3x larger than the next digital-first partner.”
“In Amazon’s pilot markets, our growth is in line with the overall U.S., and we feel very differentiated because of our strength in large baskets.”
“Price parity retailers have grown 10 percentage points faster than marked-up retailers in the past 12 months.”
“We want to power every grocery transaction in-store and online using our technology.”
“Retailers love Carrot Ads — one told me the ad check was larger than the SaaS fee they pay us.”
“80% of our code was AI-assisted in Q2... this is allowing us to move faster, launch products faster.”
“Our Smart Shop AI engine tunes relevancy for consumers in real time — virtual aisles tailored to each household.”
“I am committed to long-term profitable growth and annual EBITDA progression, but I also want flexibility to reinvest in growth.”
“In the first half, we repurchased $205 million of Instacart stock.”
Q&A Summary
Q: Eric Sheridan (Goldman Sachs): What’s your background and approach as new CEO?
A: Rogers outlined his P&G and Apple experience, Instacart journey since 2019, and said he will pursue continuity but also “extend our lead in online grocery and continue to win disproportionately” .Q: What are your top priorities for growth?
A: Affordability, expanding the enterprise platform (including international), and accelerating ads & data monetization .Q: How do you view competitive durability?
A: Instacart leads in selection, quality, speed, and affordability; strong position in large baskets .Q: Thoughts on Amazon’s grocery push?
A: Instacart growth unaffected; Amazon’s SKU count and delivery times inferior; will use this to deepen retailer ties .Q: What about consumer trends and affordability?
A: 2025 cohorts retaining better; affordability drives retention; pushing for more retailer price parity .Q: Enterprise platform & Caper Carts learnings?
A: Enterprise is strategic and underappreciated; Caper drives consumer digitization, larger baskets, and ad monetization .Q: Macro ad environment?
A: Volatile due to tariffs and SNAP regulation changes, but Instacart still delivered 12% YoY ads growth .Q: AI role?
A: Core to DNA, powering engineering, personalization, and advertising effectiveness .Q: Capital allocation philosophy?
A: Balance long-term profitability with growth reinvestment; keep M&A optionality; continue buybacks .
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