Abstract
PurposeIn the rapidly growing e-grocery segment, unattended delivery is an emerging practice with the potential to offer a superior delivery experience. The purpose of this study is to contribute to the body of knowledge for unattended grocery delivery services by empirically identifying and describing the forms and determinants of customer expectations.Design/methodology/approachA multiple case study of potential early adopters was conducted to explore customer expectations of unattended grocery delivery services. Empirical data collected from direct observations and semi-structured interviews with ten Swedish households were coded and put through a single-case as well as a cross-case analysis revealing emerging patterns from which propositions were formed.FindingsThe iteration of theory and data in the case study resulted in a conceptual model of service expectations and determinants, containing six propositions. The study reveals a clear pattern that consumers expect to save time, gain flexibility and benefit from the ease of use of the service, while they predict sufficient security. Moreover, consumers’ desire open access features from retailers and service providers, integrated product returns service and nondescript hardware designs. The findings suggest that these service expectations are determined by personal needs, technology literacy and situational factors. The identified personal needs are stress reduction, limiting social interaction and increasing spare time.Research limitations/implicationsTo support further theory development, this study presents six propositions for the types, forms and determinants of customer expectations of unattended grocery delivery.Practical implicationsThis study provides managers with up-to-date insights into customer expectations and offers guidance in designing and developing unattended grocery delivery services.Originality/valueThis study contains the first in-depth analysis of customer expectations of unattended grocery delivery services, which are increasingly used for last mile e-grocery delivery.
Highlights
While the e-commerce penetration rate of the grocery sector is still relatively low, e-grocery is one of the fastest growing retail segments
Since customer expectations of unattended grocery delivery services represent an uncharted territory in last mile delivery, an exploratory approach was adopted based on multiple cases as suggested by Eisenhardt (1989)
The study findings offer a conceptual model (Figure 1) that represents the relationship between forms and determinants of service expectations
Summary
While the e-commerce penetration rate of the grocery sector is still relatively low, e-grocery is one of the fastest growing retail segments. The fresh food e-commerce market volume in China increased more than 10-fold from 2014 to 2019, and further growth is predicted (Statista, 2020). The UK’s e-grocery market size is expected to increase from $14.6. © John Olsson, Mary Catherine Osman, Daniel Hellstr€om and Yulia Vakulenko. The full terms of this licence may be seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/ legalcode
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