How Stew Leonard's Doubled App Sales in Q4 With City Hive Fri, Mar 13, 2026 BLOGHow Stew Leonard's Grew App Sales 101% While Deepening the Customer Relationship How a beloved tri-state grocery institution used City Hive to turn their mobile app into their fastest-growing sales channel — processing nearly 20% more total orders during Q4 2025 while their owned digital channels outpaced third-party growth. Introduction & Context What started as a small dairy farm in Norwalk, Connecticut in 1969 has grown into one of the most beloved grocery institutions on the East Coast. Stew Leonard's — dubbed "The Disneyland of Dairy Stores" by the New York Times and listed in the Guinness Book of World Records for the greatest sales per unit area of any single food store in the United States — now operates eight locations across Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey, welcoming more than 20 million visitors a year.The brand's reputation was built on a simple but deeply held conviction: the customer is always right. That commitment to service has made Stew Leonard's a household name across the tri-state area, and it's the same standard they hold their technology partners to. Stew Leonard's joined the City Hive platform in 2022, extending that same customer-first philosophy into their digital alcohol business. The Challenge The holiday season is the super bowl of retail for any business selling wine and spirits. For a multi-location operation like Stew Leonard's — serving a dense, high-income tri-state customer base with high expectations — Q4 isn't just a busy period, it's a defining one. The pressure isn't simply to handle volume. It's to handle volume without sacrificing the premium, personal experience customers have come to expect from the brand.The challenge going into Q4 2025 was clear: grow digital sales meaningfully, keep the experience frictionless, and do it in a way that strengthened the direct relationship with customers rather than ceding it to third-party channels. The Solution Blake and their team at Stew Leonard's don't just log into a platform — they show up to weekly sessions with their City Hive account manager to work through challenges, plan initiatives, and move projects forward together. It's a collaborative relationship built on trust, transparency, and a shared willingness to push the platform to do more.That kind of partnership doesn't just solve today's problems — it builds the foundation for what's possible tomorrow. And heading into Q4 2025, Stew Leonard's was ready to put that foundation to work. "City Hive is flexible and always putting the needs of the customer and store as their priority. If they can't do something, they'll help you find a way. Having a direct account manager with frequent check-ins is invaluable." — BLAKE, STEW LEONARD'S Impact & Efficiencies The results from Q4 2025 tell a compelling story about what happens when a great brand pairs with the right digital infrastructure. +68% App Orders (YoY) +101% App Sales (YoY) +20% Orders in Q4 2025 Total digital orders grew nearly 20% year-over-year. But the real headline is what happened inside that growth. App orders surged 68% and app sales more than doubled, growing 101% year-over-year, outpacing every other channel. Stew Leonard's owned digital experience didn't just hold its ground against third-party alternatives. It won.For a brand whose identity is rooted in earning and keeping customer loyalty, that shift isn't just a metric. It's a signal that their direct relationship with customers is getting stronger.