Instacart appoints Facebook executive as CEO
Instacart has named former Facebook executive Fidji Simo to be its new chief executive officer.
Simo joined Instacart’s board of directors seven months ago and transitions to the lead post while Apoorva Mehta, Instacart’s founder and current CEO, transitions to executive chairman of the board.
Simo comes from a role as vice president and head of the Facebook app, where over the last 10 years she oversaw the development and strategy for the Facebook app, including News Feed, Stories, Groups, Video, Marketplace, Gaming, News, Dating, Ads and more. She was also a core driver of Facebook’s mobile monetization strategy and led the team in charge of architecting Facebook’s advertising business and developing ad formats for mobile, according to Instacart.
Simo also made video a critical part of the Facebook experience, from rolling out videos that autoplay in News Feed, to building and launching Facebook Live and Watch. Prior to Facebook, Simo joined eBay in 2007 as part of the company’s strategy team. While at eBay, she helped build out the company’s local commerce and classified-advertising initiatives.
A key figure in advancing the careers of women in technology, Simo also is the co-founder of Women in Product, a leading non-profit organization dedicated to empowering women in product management and technology, and advocating for equal representation in the workplace.
Mehta said Simo has been a part of every big moment in Facebook’s history, growing the company from nearly 1,000 to nearly 100,000 people on the popular app. “Fidji was also at Facebook during its transition from a private company to the public market and understands what it takes to lead and scale a transformational company like Instacart,” he said. “I believe that with Fidji at the helm we’ll be in an even stronger position to seize the incredible opportunity in front of us.”
Mehta said he’ll remain engaged in the business on a day-to-day basis and will partner with Simo on long-term strategic moves.
“Apoorva founded Instacart 10 years ago with an ambitious vision to bring an entire industry online and over the years he’s built and scaled a phenomenal business that supports the entire grocery ecosystem,” said Simo. “As we think about the future of food, we believe the way people eat and their relationship with food will fundamentally change over the next decade. They’ll expect a more convenient experience, the widest selection of food at their fingertips, faster delivery times, increased personalization, and more inspiration. Instacart has an opportunity to deliver all of that for customers, while also becoming an even stronger ally and growth accelerator for retailers and advertisers, and helping create economic opportunities for hundreds of thousands of shoppers.”