The battle for the super online intensifies

The purchase of the fresh product online is the last link in the chain. Although success has resisted so far, users increasingly demand this service and supermarkets know that the last mile is in the fresh

    Convenience, time savings and a great capacity to control spending are the advantages that the purchase of online food provides to users. So much so that, according to the FoodISDIgital study conducted by Ipsos, we save more if we buy online.

Therefore, it is not surprising that e-commerce in this sector has grown in value by 24.5% in the first quarter of 2017, according to data from Kantar. The acceleration that the pure players have granted to the channel continues to have an effect, and this sales platform advances two tenths with respect to 2016 and already represents 1.2% of household spending on consumer products. In addition, according to this consultancy, the online channel can curb in the medium term this tendency to invest continuously in the physical store.

Not only in the super

When deciding on an establishment to make this purchase, the majority (77%) opts for the super and hypermarket websites themselves. But Amazon and Glovo are gaining more and more positions (especially among men).

But what exactly do we acquire when we buy home products online? Packaging (88% of consumers ask for it), beverages (82%), dairy (64%) and to a lesser extent bakery and confectionery (44%) are the main options, although the Ipsos report also ensures that perishable products like Fruit, vegetables, meat and fish are not so far from the usual shopping list. In fact, they reach percentages of 44% and 37% respectively.

«The online channel now represents 38% of food purchases, compared to 62% in person»

From Carrefour, Innova + is assured that seven out of ten customers include these products in their online purchases. "The company prepares the order the same day of the delivery and identifies the days of useful life to guarantee the maximum quality of the products, and also offers the customer the Freshness Guarantee plan, by which only the customer calls If you are not satisfied, you have a money back guarantee. " On the other hand, Diego Sebastián de Erice, e-commerce director Food DIA Spain, assures that although it is true that at first the fresh product did not enter the online orders, right now the proportion is identical to the physical purchase. "It is true that bulky or heavy products are the gateway to buying online, but sometimes the expert knows how to choose better than yourself the melon that is good.

The 60-40 ratio

The online channel copa and 38% of food purchases compared to 62% that is done in person. In the case of DIA they assure that, at the moment, the client is mixed: it combines the purchase in the physical store with the online store. "When he tries it a couple of times and sees that he has no problems, it's when he repeats and loyalizes," De Erice explains. But he does not believe that the retail disappears altogether, although he admits: "I do not see my children going to the supermarket as I have been".

Carrefour sources believe that "the key is to be able to respond to the needs of the consumer and Carrefour does with the development of its omnichannel, multi-format and multi-brand strategy, with which it is able to offer a consumer purchase option, independently where is this and the way of purchase you choose ".

«The logistics and transport of fresh products is one of the key points for the business»

The majority payment method, according to Ipsos, is the credit or debit card (87%) although the high use of systems such as Paypal (47%) leads to the conclusion that among the most experienced consumers this type of solution has many followers. A high percentage of users, 42%, consider that it is easier to control spending when buying online: without a doubt, the monitoring of the shopping cart has more effect than the mental sum while the commercial surface is covered.

In the guidelines that govern the moment of purchase, they overwhelm the computer (device chosen in 70% of transactions) and from home (94% of cases). The "heavy users" are those that exceed the average purchase by mobile (29% compared to 22% on average). The use of applications for these operations is already successful for a third of consumers.