HelloFresh vs Instacart

HelloFresh cuts 2026 outlook on weaker customer growth

HelloFresh has lowered its full-year 2026 guidance after reporting lower-than-expected revenue for the third quarter, driven by weaker new customer acquisition during the back-to-school period. The company now expects currency-adjusted revenue to decline 9-11% year-over-year, compared to the previously expected decline at the lower end of a 3-6% range. Adjusted EBITDA guidance was also reduced to €350-370 million, down from €375-425 million. The company attributes the shortfall to significant cuts in marketing spend during Q3, which reduced new customer volume. Despite the revenue decline, Q3 adjusted EBITDA is expected to be €45-55 million, above the prior year's €40 million. Final Q3 results are scheduled for release on November 5.

• HelloFresh lowered its 2026 revenue guidance to a 9-11% decline, from a previously expected 3-6% decline.
• Q3 2026 currency-adjusted revenue expected to decline 11-12% year-over-year, worse than the analyst consensus of -6.8%.
• Q3 2026 adjusted EBITDA expected between €45-55 million, below analyst consensus of €57.2 million.

The Drum Columnist Explores Marketing's Obsession with Toilet Humor

Columnist Oscar Quine explores the recent trend of toilet humor in advertising, from Marks and Spencer's fiber marketing to Pampers' 'Poonami' and Super Bowl 'Toilet Bowl' ads. He applies Freudian and Bakhtinian theories to analyze why brands use scatological themes, suggesting that such humor grabs attention and reflects cultural shifts. Quine discusses campaigns by Andrex, HelloFresh, Liquid Death, and Who Gives A Crap, and touches on concepts like 'enshittification' and the protein obsession. The article is an opinion piece that uses psychoanalytic frameworks to interpret advertising trends, concluding that creativity is essential to avoid formulaic taboo content.

• HelloFresh ran a Pride social media post promoting high-fiber meals with the promo code 'BOTTOMSUP'.
• Pampers coined the term 'poonami' in its advertising.
• The 2026 Super Bowl was dubbed the 'Toilet Bowl' due to numerous poop-themed ads.

Big Y Foods and Instacart Launch In-Store Foodservice Kiosks and Online Catering Ordering

For the first time, Big Y customers can customize made-to-order meals from in-store kiosks or online, and enjoy pickup & delivery options powered by FoodStorm SPRINGFIELD, MA and SAN FRANCISCO, October 20, 2026 - Big...

Gopuff hands onsite adtech to Instacart in retail media alliance

Gopuff, the convenience delivery app, has partnered with competitor Instacart to run its onsite advertising capabilities via Instacart's white-label Carrot Ads technology. The deal, announced in September, also includes Gopuff joining the Instacart Marketplace for rapid delivery in as fast as 15 minutes. Gopuff's head of ads, Michael Peroutka, explains the rationale: leveraging Instacart's demand generation (over 9,000 brand advertisers and a 300-person sales team) to establish a revenue floor while freeing Gopuff's team to focus on bespoke, experiential campaigns that leverage its youth-skewing audience (80% aged 18-34) and vertical integration. The partnership highlights a trend of alliances between competing retailers in retail media. Peroutka emphasizes a shared metric of total contribution profit and 'cubic profitability' as a north star, and criticizes vanity metrics like ROI and ROAS, focusing on moving product.

• Gopuff partnered with Instacart to run its onsite ad capabilities via Carrot Ads, announced in September 2026.
• Gopuff joins the Instacart Marketplace, fulfilling orders from its own warehouses in as fast as 15 minutes.
• Gopuff launched its own ad platform three years ago, but has now outsourced the technology to Instacart.

Skip and Instacart Join Forces, Providing Canadians With More Stores, More Stuff, and More to Skip

New partnership brings Instacart’s grocery and retail marketplace to Skip, while Skip’s 50,000+ national and local restaurant partners become available to Instacart customers.