Online ordering and delivery platform Mercato moved its headquarters cross-country from New York City to San Diego, California. The company is a provider of an online ordering and delivery platform for independently owned grocery stores.
The new Mercato headquarters are in the Downtown Works building on W. B Street in San Diego. The company said it will continue to maintain office space in New York City for some sales staff.
The move is part of its ongoing strategy to expand in markets from coast to coast, the company said. Tech entrepreneur and founder and CEO Bobby Brannigan, who created the e-commerce platform to help independent grocers like his parents in Brooklyn, New York, to compete, sees the potential for startups in San Diego. He cites the city’s livability, beautiful beaches and ability to attract highly-qualified employees.
“We moved Mercato to San Diego because of its amazing weather, vibrant and growing downtown, and lower cost of living compared to cities like New York City and San Francisco,” said Brannigan. “As one of the country’s most desirable cities to live in, San Diego attracts top talent, now an advantage for Mercato.”
“Mercato is successively addressing an underserved market in the online grocery delivery space—independent grocers,” said “serial entrepreneur” and philanthropist Michael Loeb. “Bobby and his team have the experience, vision and drive to be the brand name in online grocery delivery for independent retailers in the U.S. We’re bullish on Mercato and plan on providing further investment in the future.”
Mercato also recently added 14 new staff members who will be working at the San Diego headquarters, including Brian Waldman, VP of marketing, and Gauri Munuswamy, recently promoted from head of sales to VP of sales. Mercato has plans to add additional personnel throughout 2019.
Currently, Mercato offers e-commerce and same-day delivery of high-quality groceries and specialty foods from more than 650 independently owned stores across the country. It has contracts with about 650 independent grocers in markets like New York (Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens); Chicago; San Francisco; Alameda, California; Washington, D.C.; Boston, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and in San Diego with retailers such as Venissimo Cheese and Windmill Farms.
