Smart Shopping Or Lazy Parenting? Tech Gives Rise In Middleman Economy
SAN JOSE (CBS SF) -- Shopping can be a hassle, but there's a new service intended to make it a less painful experience. It's where a so-called "middleman" connects buyers and sellers.
Curbside, a Bay Area startup, does just that by partnering with Target to deliver the goods right as you pull up. By not having to get the kids out of the car and into the store, parents save time.
Curbside CEO Jaron Waldman said he came up with the idea after his son was born.
"I think everyone's got those days when things are really, really hectic," Waldman said.
Waldman says Curbside is not Webvan, the doomed startup that lost millions of dollars trying to revolutionize grocery home delivery. Curbside has low overhead, and it's free to the customer.
"But it's fundamentally a lot more expensive to get the goods out of the store, put them in a truck, ship them to your house, than it is to have the goods ready at the store and have people pick them up," Waldman said. "Because people are moving anyway -- they're on their way."
This past year has seen the rise of middleman popularity. Like Instacart, where for a fee, someone will go to the store, shop and deliver your groceries.
Or Nimbl, a small startup that was beta testing deliveries of cash for those who are too busy to go to the ATM.
Santa Clara retail expert Kirthi Kalyanam says Amazon has proven people love speed and convenience, and will pay for it.
"You pay $100 to Amazon to do Prime, right?" Kalyanam said. "What if you pay me the same $100 and I can start delivering things in the house the same day? That could be a powerful value proposition. So people are going to start bundling the home delivery model with other models and really make a difference."
Curbside will be expanding to other major retailers and Bay Area malls this holiday shopping season.