Company Context

FreshLoop is a regional grocery delivery platform operating in 12 U.S. metro areas with $180M in annual gross merchandise value (GMV). The company has built strong consumer demand in urban neighborhoods, but growth has slowed: order growth has decelerated from 38% year-over-year to 14%, and marketing CAC has risen 27% over the last 12 months. FreshLoop currently works with 420 independent grocery stores and small regional chains, earning an average 12% take rate on marketplace orders. You are a Strategy Manager at FreshLoop, and the CEO has asked you to recommend whether the company should launch a new B2B software-and-fulfillment offering for retail partners—and, critically, how to persuade skeptical store owners and internal stakeholders to support it.

Strategic Situation

FreshLoop's product team has developed a white-label ordering and inventory module that would let partner stores accept orders directly through their own branded websites while using FreshLoop's picking and last-mile network. The recommendation on the table is to shift from being only a consumer marketplace to a hybrid model: continue the marketplace, but also sell the B2B platform to existing retailers for a monthly SaaS fee plus fulfillment charges. Some executives support the move because it could deepen retailer relationships and diversify revenue. Others worry it will cannibalize marketplace volume, require sales and onboarding investment, and face resistance from retailers who already distrust platform economics.

Data Points

Your Task

Prepare a recommendation for the executive team on whether FreshLoop should launch the B2B offering and how to persuade key stakeholders to adopt your recommendation.

1. Size the revenue and profit impact of the B2B launch under a realistic first-year scenario.
2. Assess competitive dynamics and explain why retailers would or would not adopt the new model.
3. Identify the main stakeholder objections—both internal and external—and how you would address them.
4. Recommend a persuasion strategy: what evidence, pilot design, and messaging would you use to win support?
5. Propose a phased go-to-market plan with measurable milestones.

Constraints

• FreshLoop has approved only $4M for the initiative in the next 12 months.
• The sales team has capacity to onboard at most 80 stores in year one.
• The CEO wants a decision within 30 days and a pilot live within one quarter.
• Retailer trust is fragile because several partners have previously complained about limited access to customer data on the marketplace.