What Happened to the WebVan Concept Where Grocery Store Retailers Delivered?

Remember in Silicon Valley when a billion dollars was invested in a home delivery grocery store concept? It seems everyone liked the idea, but it didn’t seem to work out in reality, ever wonder why? In some high-end neighborhoods people loved it and were willing to pay more for the convenience of having their groceries delivered, of course that was at the time of an economic boom and there was more money flowing in the economy.

During recessionary times it is a luxury that would not be enjoyed by the masses and a massive undertaking of that size would need the economies of scale to keep up and turn a profit. If we consider the recent N1H1 Swine Flu breakout in Mexico City, well you can understand why such a concept could be paramount if something like that happened in the United States during flu season. A huge outbreak that had the potential of killing 100s of millions of people would have everyone hiding out at home afraid to go anywhere.

Having your groceries delivered would therefore not be a luxury at all; rather it would be a life saver literally. Perhaps, learning from the mistakes that were made with WebVan someone could pick that ball up and run with that concept again. It seems to be a needed service with a good niche and something that could end up saving America in the process.

Now, some grocery stores do deliver, but they are far and few between, the ones that do seem to make money at it, although it is cost prohibitive for the majority of middle class and lower class families. Please think on this.