When the famous meal kit company Plated was acquired by Albertsons grocery chain in 2017, we were a bit worried about the future of its subscription service, but we remained hopeful. In April 2018, we found out that Plated meal kits would enter the retail realm, which did not sound bad per se, but it did signal a shift in the focus of the company’s activities. A year later, Albertsons laid off 10% of Plated’s employees.
Finally, in November 2019, we received the sad news that Plated would no longer be delivering its kits nationwide. However, that does not mean that its meal kits are disappearing from the market just yet.
Focusing On Retail
What is important to know is that Plated has no plans of re-launching its meal kit delivery service and it is no longer accepting new customers. If you already have a Plated subscription, all outstanding credits associated with your account will be refunded to the card you used for your payments.
While the company’s meal kits are no longer available for home delivery, they are still sold in hundreds of stores across the country, including but not limited to Albertsons. The plan is to make them available in more stores in 2020 and expand the company’s offer to include more than just dinner options.
In sum, Plated is no longer a meal kit delivery but it is being redesigned to suit the needs of patrons who shop for meal kits in grocery aisles. Although we are not exactly surprised by this recent development, we have to say that we honestly hoped that Plated would keep delivering its kits to homes across America for years to come. At this moment, our only hope is that its meal kits will remain as popular now that they have been permanently relocated to in-store retail.