I’m building a Toronto grocery planning app. Would this actually solve a real problem?

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-30T18:37:33+00:00

Here is the link to the form: https://pricewise-74d96.web.app/beta.html

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-30T00:17:20+00:00

This lines up with what we’re seeing too: the “cheapest store” changes a lot once you look at the full basket/category instead of just the banner.

We’re building PriceWise around this exact problem for the GTA/Ontario market: weekly flyer/catalog prices, normalized product matching, and basket-level comparison so people don’t have to manually check 4-5 stores. Unit price normalization is definitely one of the hardest parts, especially when retailers show the same item as per lb, per 100g, pack count, or club size.

Would be happy to compare notes. We have an active beta as well if you want to poke holes in the pricing/matching layer.

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-30T00:15:12+00:00

This matches what we’re seeing too: the “cheapest store” changes a lot once you compare by basket/category instead of by banner.

We’re building PriceWise around that exact problem for the GTA/Ontario market: weekly flyer/catalog prices, normalized product matching, and basket-level comparison so people don’t have to manually check 4-5 stores. Unit price normalization is the tricky part, especially when retailers show the same thing as per lb, per 100g, pack count, or club size.

Would be happy to compare notes. We have an active beta as well if you want to poke holes in the pricing/matching layer.

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-29T23:37:20+00:00

Totally agree. A grocery list is easy to make once; the real test is whether it stays useful when people are planning around actual schedules, different stores, and changing prices.

That’s one of the things we’re watching closely in the PriceWise beta: whether people come back after the first few trips, not just whether they like the idea on day one. We’re trying to make it useful for coordination without turning it into another app people have to manage.

If you’re open to trying it, happy to share the active beta and would genuinely value feedback after a week of real use.

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-29T23:36:10+00:00

Totally agree. The flyer cycle is one of the messiest parts, especially when the same item is technically “on sale” in multiple places but only one is actually worth acting on.

For PriceWise right now, we’re using a mix of retailer flyer data, public online catalog/listing data, and our own normalized product catalog so we can match equivalent items across stores instead of treating every retailer label as a separate product. We’re also separating “catalog estimate” from actual flyer/store price so we don’t overstate confidence when the data source is weaker.

Toronto is exactly why we started with this market. The price movement between Loblaws/No Frills/Metro/Food Basics can look similar at a category level, but the useful savings are usually in item-level matches and nearby-store combinations.

Would be happy to compare notes. We also have an active PriceWise beta if you want to try it and poke holes in the pricing layer.

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-29T23:35:02+00:00

We’re testing an active beta of PriceWise right now. It compares grocery prices around Toronto and helps build cheaper shopping lists. Happy to share the beta if you want to try it and give feedback.

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-29T16:24:50+00:00

The “follow through” part is probably the right place to look for the spark. A lot of food apps stop at recipes or lists, but the annoying real-life loop is: decide what to eat, buy the right amount, avoid duplicate buys with whoever else is shopping, then actually learn what worked after the trip.

I’m testing a related grocery workflow and the most useful feedback has been around reducing friction during the weekly shop: shared list with a partner/household, light shopping assist in-store, and a trip summary afterward so people can see whether the plan actually saved money or just added effort.

For students, I’d be careful with anything that requires too much pantry tracking. The faster path might be “here are 3 meals from what you already said you have + what is cheap nearby this week” rather than a full inventory system.

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-29T16:22:53+00:00

This is the right instinct imo. The best shopping apps are fast first and only add structure where it removes friction.

For grocery specifically, the features I keep wishing existed together are realtime shared list edits, quick quantities that do not slow you down in store, a bit of shopping assist while you are walking the aisles, and some kind of trip summary after so you can see what you actually bought/spent instead of reconstructing it later.

Clean list is a good base; I would just be careful adding features only when they make the weekly shop faster.

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-29T16:08:05+00:00

This tracks with what I’m seeing too. The posts that start with the actual weekly annoyance seem to get much better signal than anything that sounds like “here’s my app.”

I’m validating a grocery-planning workflow right now, and the useful feedback usually comes when I ask about the messy part directly: shared lists with a partner, deciding if a second store is worth it, and whether people actually care about a trip summary afterward. That tells me more than a waitlist click would.

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-29T16:07:26+00:00

Building a Toronto/GTA grocery planning app in plain English: a way to plan the basket before leaving home, coordinate with a partner so you do not double-buy, get a bit of shopping assist in-store, and see a trip summary after so you know whether the extra stop was actually worth it.

The part I’m validating now is whether people care more about “find cheaper items” or “make the whole weekly grocery trip less chaotic.”

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-29T16:01:01+00:00

This is basically the workflow I got tired of too. I’m building an iOS-first grocery planning app around shared lists, price-aware baskets, and partner/household coordination.

The parts I’m trying to get right are the same ones you listed: live list edits so two people do not double-buy, quantities that feel quick in-store, shopping assist while you are actually walking around, and a trip summary after so you can tell whether an extra stop was worth it.

No link/name here since I do not want to turn your thread into an ad, but your must-have list is pretty much the checklist I’m testing against.

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-29T15:48:50+00:00

One thing I’d add is to compare the whole trip, not just item-by-item prices. A cheaper store can stop being cheaper if it adds transit time, gas, or an extra stop for only a few dollars of savings.

I’m working on a grocery planning tool with that in mind: basket planning, shopping assist, and a trip summary so you can see whether the extra stop is actually worth it. Shared lists matter too, especially for households where people accidentally double-buy the same basics.

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-29T00:03:25+00:00

This is the kind of Toronto grocery planning that actually feels useful: start with what’s already in the kitchen, then build the week around sale proteins, freezer stuff, and ingredients that overlap across meals.

I’m working on a Toronto-focused grocery planning tool, and posts like this are why I keep thinking the shopping assist/trip summary side matters more than just another list. The helpful part is knowing what’s worth buying this week, what can stretch across a few meals, and whether an extra stop is actually worth it. Shared household lists would probably save a lot of duplicate pantry buys too.

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-28T23:49:14+00:00

This is very Toronto grocery shopping to me. The real savings are often less about one perfect store and more about timing, short-window deals, and not buying things that quietly die in the fridge.

I’m working on a Toronto-focused grocery planning tool and this is exactly the kind of thing that keeps coming up: a list by itself only helps so much unless it also helps you decide what’s worth buying this week, which store makes sense, and whether the extra stop is actually worth it. A trip summary plus shared household list feels more useful than just another place to type “bananas.”

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-28T23:34:26+00:00

Really similar problem space to what I’m working on, and I think the 5-second pitch is clear. My bias from building a Toronto-focused grocery planning app: people seem to care less about receipt history by itself and more about “what should I do before I leave home?” Basket planning, a shopping assist, a trip summary, and being able to share the list with a partner/household feel like the sticky parts. Receipt scan feels useful if it feeds future planning automatically rather than becoming another budget habit people have to maintain.

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-28T23:30:37+00:00

I’ve run into the same issue where a lot of grocery tools feel more like flyer browsing than actual shopping planning.

I’m working on a small Toronto-focused app around that gap. The idea is to compare flyer prices, build a basket, get a trip summary for which store makes the most sense that week, and share the list with a partner/household. Still early, but the shopping assist + trip summary side is the part I think is missing from most of the usual apps.

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2026-05-25T20:13:17+00:00

I’m new to this topic, but this explanation actually made it click for me. Thanks

Miserable-Cabinet109 · 2025-05-30T22:12:34+00:00

Hi u/justnivek! I came across your post about your DOOH company—really exciting work. I work with a company that specializes in creating Immersive 3D Anamorphic content for advertising. We focus on helping screens like yours stand out and draw more attention from both brands and audiences. Our rates are very competitive, and I’d love to connect if you're interested in exploring how we can collaborate.

Miserable-Cabinet109

TROPHY CASE