2023 Star Women in Grocery Award Winner Alice Luong (Q&A)

Alice Luong

Director of Market Strategy and Planning
Instacart

What intrigues you about the grocery/CPG business? 

I’m intrigued by the remarkable advancements in technology that are transforming the way consumers do their everyday grocery shopping, whether in-store or online. In contrast to the pre-pandemic era, the experience has changed significantly. Consumers are now able to enjoy more personalized shopping experiences, convenient same-day delivery options and can use innovative digital solutions like smart carts to skip long checkout lines. There’s still plenty of headroom for more innovation, so it’s an incredibly exciting time for the industry right now. 

What is the most challenging aspect of your job? 

Instacart strives to develop impactful solutions for a diverse range of audiences including retailers, consumers, CPG brands and self-employed contractors who help us deliver orders. The challenge lies in prioritizing our efforts to serve the needs of all our audiences, and is a discipline we are constantly refining. 

What keeps you motivated at work? 

Seeing how our technology can help solve problems and deliver delightful experiences for our grocery retailers, ranging from local family-owned businesses to large enterprises, is a constant source of motivation. Knowing that our tech can contribute to enhancing their operations and customer satisfaction drives us to continue pushing the boundaries and raising the bar. 

What do you like most about your job? 

The ever-changing nature of consumer behaviour within the grocery industry is what I find most enjoyable. These evolving trends present us with new opportunities and inspire fresh ideas for our business to think about. Each day is guaranteed to be different, and this dynamic allows us to continuously build, learn and grow alongside the changing landscape. 

Career highlight/greatest achievement? 

The pandemic was a major catalyst for online grocery adoption. Demands were so high that it became challenging for our teams to build all the technology we wanted to create due to the sheer volume of initiatives. To overcome this obstacle and foster innovation at the breadth and speed that we wanted, I had the opportunity to partner with our corporate development team to pursue mergers and acquisitions of some great solutions in the market. The experience of bringing together companies that share common goals and aspirations is truly a fulfilling experience. 

What is a fun fact about you? 

I love cooking and learning about dishes from different cultures. When I travel, I make a point to take cooking classes with locals to learn more about the people and culture. This experience is a great way to deepen your understanding of local ingredients, where they’re sourced from, and the traditional kitchen tools used to prepare the dishes—I highly recommend it.

Click here for the full list of 2023 Star Women in Grocery award winners.