Before the age of supermarkets, there were small artisan shops and grocery stores specializing in one or two products. There were the butchers who knew every cut and grain of meat. There were bakers whose creations smell of beautiful mornings. There were fruit and vegetable vendors who took fresh produce from the farm to their stalls. There were cheese artisans who can tell the story of each cheese on their cart.
But then the world evolved and we all had to keep up with it by living a more fast-paced life, one where we could barely afford to stop and take a breather, let alone visit small grocery stores and artisan shops like we used to before. Everything became instant and supermarkets offered a faster way to do groceries all in one place.
Thankfully, there is a resurgence of small grocery stores these days, thanks to more consumers realizing the value and quality that they can get from buying in these artisan shops rather than in highly commercialized supermarkets. And to bridge consumers to their favorite local stores, Mercato was born.
A little story behind Mercato
Bobby Brannigan, the CEO of Mercato, always had a heart for small grocery stores. After all, his father ran a butcher shop and grocery store in Brooklyn where he spent most of his growing up years behind the counter. This gave him a good foundation of what it was like to run a grocery store, which he used to create Mercato, an online grocery delivery service that connects customers to local artisan shops and grocery stores around town. He had every detail nailed down—from how products are ordered to how big product cards have to be to accommodate the large thumbs of butchers.
Mercato revolutionizes online grocery shopping by letting you go back to the good old days when artisans and grocers were just down the block. But now all you have to do is go online and buy the things that you want from these shops and have them delivered right to your doorstep. And with over 200,000 products and 483 independent shops available, you’ll surely find what you need—and want—at Mercato.
San Diego welcomes Mercato
In an effort to bring local farmer’s markets closer to consumers, Mercato announced late last year that it will be expanding its reach to seven new markets in 2019 including Los Angeles, Austin, Seattle and San Diego.
Explaining how the online marketplace works, Brannigan said: “Customers can order on Mercato online and receive the same high quality as if they picked items at the market. The delivery is consolidated with all items going out to the customer together in a single order.” The new grocery delivery San Diego service aims to connect customers to the smaller, independent grocers where they can enjoy good quality food without spending a lot of time visiting the local stores themselves.
Mercato taps the local farmer’s market in San Diego to offer a wide range of products to its consumers online. “In working with the farmers markets, we consolidate all vendors under one umbrella for consumers,” Brannigan added. This formula has worked for Mercato since it launched and it continues to benefit consumers who want high quality food but don’t have the time to visit local butcher shops, delis and grocers.
What Mercato in San Diego has to offer
With its latest online grocery delivery service opening in San Diego, Mercato pulled out all the stops to offer customers in the Bay Area access to some of the best local groceries in town.
There is Venissimo Cheese in the heart of Mission Hills for all the cheese you will ever need. This flagship store has more than 2,000 types of cheeses from around the world and also has a wide variety of party trays and charcuterie platters for those last-minute gatherings at home that you don’t have time to prepare for. Try the Cheese Feast Tray that includes five types of cheeses, two sliced French baguettes, crunchy marcona almonds, sweet and savory spreads, and a variety of dried and fresh fruit that your guests will surely love.
Windmill Farms is also another favorite offering high quality groceries and organic food from some of the best artisans in San Diego. It has everything from fresh produce, meats, dry goods and even natural supplements, so you have most of the things that you need in one place. You can choose from more than 2,000 products from Windmill Farms and have them delivered by Mercato to your home. Nothing can be more convenient than that!
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