A surge in demand for online grocery services is likely to continue beyond the COVID-19 pandemic, a UK study has found.
According to the HIM & MCA Insight UK Recovery Report 2020, some 29% of shoppers are using online channels to purchase food and beverages more than before the lockdown began.
In addition, the study claimed that a fifth (20%) plan to continue to use these services more even when lockdown has ended, a figure that rises to 36% among 25-34 year olds.
Another cohort of shoppers that are using online grocery more frequently are over 75 year olds, the study found, facilitated by the prioritisation of delivery slots for the elderly and vulnerable by grocery retailers.
Upweighted Capabilities
“Through lockdown, existing online retailers have upweighted their delivery capabilities," commented Blonnie Walsh, head of insight at HIM & MCA Insight.
"In addition, retailers new to online delivery have found the platforms and infrastructure to support them within a channel that has seen significant growth. However, we don’t expect this growth to be short-term, with increased usage of grocery online set to be a legacy behaviour in the aftermath of coronavirus."
As well as traditional supermarket platforms, 12% of respondents also said that they are now ordering groceries through delivery apps such as Deliveroo and UberEATS.
"Discounters, with little in the way of delivery capabilities stand to lose out to this revenue stream, hence Aldi’s announcement that they are now partnering with Deliveroo makes sense," Walsh added.
© 2020 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
