Online Grocery Retailing Research Articles

Navigating the online food environment: policy pathways for promoting food access, transparency, and healthy food choices online.

The internet is drastically changing how U.S. consumers shop for groceries, order food from restaurants, and interact with food marketing. There is an urgent need for new policies to help ensure that the internet is a force for good when it comes to food access, transparency, and nutrition. This article outlines actions that federal agencies-like the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Federal Trade Commission (FTC)-and state and local governments can take to improve the online food environment. We recommend policies in three settings: online grocery retail, online restaurant ordering, and marketing on social media and other online platforms. For example, USDA could finalize regulations increasing access to online WIC and remove barriers to accessing online SNAP by requiring large retailers to waive online delivery and service fees for SNAP purchases. FDA could improve access to nutrition information by issuing guidance describing what product information should be available at the online point of selection. FTC could give better guidance on appropriate tactics when marketing to children and collect better data on how companies are marketing food to children online. Finally, state governments could pass laws like New York's recently introduced Predatory Marketing Prevention Act to address false and misleading advertising of unhealthy foods aimed at children and other vulnerable groups.

An Empirical Examination of BuyBox Assignments in Online Grocery Retail

ABSTRACTIn Amazon's marketplaces across the globe, multiple sellers sell the same product, leading Amazon to introduce BuyBox. This box‐like feature, located on the top‐right corner of product pages, prominently displays a single seller at a given time. Using a choice model and a panel dataset of over 290,000 unique grocery products from five countries, our study investigates the key factors that influence BuyBox assignments. We found that winning the BuyBox is primarily determined by competitive pricing—being the lowest‐price seller for a 180‐day period significantly improves the chances of a BuyBox assignment. Furthermore, maintaining low current product prices, low sales ranks, and minimal out‐of‐stock percentages are crucial in becoming a BuyBox seller. These findings affect Amazon and its extensive network of over 2 million third‐party sellers, who navigate the increasingly competitive and dynamic E‐commerce landscape.

Sustainability challenges of last-mile logistics and transition to online grocery retailing in sparsely populated areas

Sustainability challenges of last-mile logistics and transition to online grocery retailing in sparsely populated areas

Mapping ultra-processed foods (UPFs) in India: a formative research study

BackgroundIncreased consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) which have additives such as artificial colours, flavours and are usually high in salt, sugar, fats and specific preservatives, are associated with diet-related non-communicable diseases (NCDs). In India, there are no standard criteria for identifying UPFs using a classification system based on extent and purpose of industrial processing. Scientific literature on dietary intake of foods among Indian consumers classifies foods as unhealthy based on presence of excessive amounts of specific nutrients which makes it difficult to distinguish UPFs from other commercially available processed foods.MethodsA literature review followed by an online grocery retailer scan for food label reading was conducted to map the types of UPFs in Indian food market and scrutinize their ingredient list for the presence of ultra-processed ingredients. All UPFs identified were randomly listed and then grouped into categories, followed by saliency analysis to understand preferred UPFs by consumers. Indian UPF categories were then finalized to inform a UPF screener.ResultsA lack of application of a uniform definition for UPFs in India was observed; hence descriptors such as junk-foods, fast-foods, ready-to-eat foods, instant-foods, processed-foods, packaged-foods, high-fat-sugar-and-salt foods were used for denoting UPFs. After initial scanning of such foods reported in literature based on standard definition of UPFs, an online grocery retailer scan of food labels for 375 brands (atleast 3 brands for each food item) confirmed 81 food items as UPFs. A range of packaged traditional recipes were also found to have UPF ingredients. Twenty three categories of UPFs were then developed and subjected to saliency analysis. Breads, chips and sugar-sweetened beverages (e.g. sodas and cold-drinks) were the most preferred UPFs while frozen ready-to-eat/cook foods (e.g. chicken nuggets and frozen kebabs) were least preferred.ConclusionIndia needs to systematically apply a food classification system and define Indian food categories based on the level of industrial processing. Mapping of UPFs is the first step towards development of a quick screener that would generate UPF consumption data to inform clear policy guidelines and regulations around UPFs and address their impact on NCDs.

Alcohol Interventions on Online Grocery Shopping Platforms

Introduction & BackgroundThere is opportunity to engage light to moderate drinkers in alcohol reduction interventions as a preventative measure. In the space of online grocery shopping there is an added challenge in intervention development in the form of deceptive patterns, which influence consumer behaviour in unhealthy ways including automating behaviour and encouraging overconsumption. Objectives & ApproachThe objectives of this study are to: 1) identify deceptive patterns in the online grocery shopping context, 2) develop interventions which support healthier decision making in this context, 3) apply those interventions to appropriate product categories. The method utilised in the first objective is heuristic analysis which was conducted across eleven major online grocery shopping platforms. The interventions were then developed using the Rapid Iterative Testing and Evaluation (RITE) method, which involved interviewing participants and iterating upon the inventions after every interview. Each interview was analysed using content analysis. When incorporating the interventions into the online grocery shopping environment, interviews were conducted to gain insight into drinking and purchasing habits of consumers. These final interviews were then analysed with inductive thematic analysis. Relevance to Digital FootprintsDigital Footprints underpin the entire intervention development space. The background of the project is built upon human shopping and interaction behaviour online when encountering deceptive patterns. These deceptive patterns have been established using mobile gaming micro-transaction data, online grocery shopping log-in and rewards data, among other data sources. Digital Footprints data can further support the findings from the thematic analysis by further showing cultural and social trends around drinking (e.g., increased purchasing of seasonal beers and ciders in the summer and during sporting tournaments). The purpose of the drinking identified through those social and cultural trends gauge the appropriateness of proposed alcohol interventions. Beyond this, digital footprints data around engagement with health and wellness promoting applications (e.g., active users and app downloads) provides greater insight into the types of health messaging that garner attention and can be used to further inform how to approach those currently outside the health-engaged group. Digital footprints serve to attach larger societal trends to the smaller-scaled interviews and thematic analysis conducted as part of the study. ResultsInitial findings have shown opportunities for nudging light to moderate drinkers who primarily consume beer, wine, or cider. Spirits have been identified as difficult to substitute due to a lack of substitution options in the low alcohol spirit category that are widely available on the consumer market via online grocery retailers. Conclusions & ImplicationsWithout significant change, costs to the National Health Service (NHS) in alcohol related harm are set to rise by over 1 billion GBP. Alcohol consumption is a public health risk and there are opportunities to utilise digital footprint informed interventions to engage the public in preventative interventions.

What drives customer loyalty in a pandemic? Semantic analysis of grocery retailers

AbstractThe COVID-19 pandemic accelerated online grocery shopping and disrupted customer loyalty. This study analyzes 45,603 Trustpilot reviews of grocery retailers across three eras: pre-pandemic, pandemic, and the “new normal”. We employ Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count to categorize loyalty drivers into three dimensions—cognitive, affective, and social experiences–and we test their relationship with customer loyalty. Whereas cognitive and affective drivers were dominant before the pandemic, social drivers gained prominence during and after the pandemic, reflecting a desire for social interactions amid social distancing. We demonstrate that the influence of the drivers on customer loyalty remains consistent, except for the post-pandemic period, where the cognitive driver lost influence. Consequently, we conclude that consumer behavior in online grocery retailing has changed profoundly. We further suggest that online reviews provide attractive opportunities for retailers to analyze, build, and sustain customer loyalty.

'Healthier options tend to get lost in the noise of online' - Australian shoppers' experiences with online grocery platforms.

We aimed to understand what influences parents' purchasing behaviours when shopping for groceries online and potential ways to improve the healthiness of online grocery platforms. We conducted semi-structured interviews, guided by the Marketing Mix framework. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to analyse data. Online interviews were conducted with primary grocery shoppers. Parents (n 14) or caregivers (n 2) using online grocery platforms at least every 2 weeks. Most participants perceived purchasing healthy food when shopping for groceries online to be more challenging compared to in physical stores. They expressed concerns about the prominence of online marketing for unhealthy food. Participants from lower socio-economic backgrounds often depended on online supermarket catalogues to find price promotions, but healthy options at discounted prices were limited. Across socio-economic groups, fresh items like meat and fruit were preferred to be purchased instore due to concerns about online food quality.Participants believed online grocery platforms should make healthy foods more affordable and supported regulations on supermarket retailers to promote healthy options and limit unhealthy food promotion online. Participants had varied experiences with online grocery shopping, with both positive and negative aspects. Efforts to improve population diets need to include mechanisms to create health-enabling online grocery retail platforms. Government interventions to restrict marketing of unhealthy foods and promote marketing of healthy options on these platforms warrant investigation.

A Study of Consumer Satisfaction Towards Online Grocery Stores

In recent years, the popularity of online grocery shopping has had a big impact on consumer behaviour. The purpose of this survey is to find out how satisfied customers are with online grocery stores. It seeks to comprehend the rationale for their adoption of online grocery shopping as well as pinpoint the critical elements impacting their level of happiness. The study looks into a number of factors that make an online grocery buying experience enjoyable. These elements probably consist of: Convenience: It's thought that two of the main factors influencing satisfaction are the simplicity of home delivery and the time-saving aspect of online grocery shopping. Product Selection and Quality: The range and calibre of goods that online grocery retailers provide is likely to have an impact on customers' happiness. Website functionality and user experience: It is anticipated that a user-friendly website with simple product search, checkout, and navigation will play a big role in customer satisfaction. Delivery Accuracy and Efficiency: Proper handling of perishables, precise order fulfilment, and timely delivery are critical factors that affect customer satisfaction. Customer service: A customer's pleasure with online shopping is likely to increase with prompt and friendly customer care.

Online grocery shopping adoption versus non-adoption among the over-50s in Germany

Online grocery shopping (OGS) has significantly risen due to accelerated retail digitization and reshaped consumer shopping behaviors over the last years. Despite this trend, the German online grocery market lags behind its international counterparts. Notably, with almost half of the German population aged over 50 and the 55–64 age group emerging as the largest user segment in e-commerce, the over-50 demographic presents an attractive yet relatively overlooked audience for the expansion of the online grocery market. However, research on OGS behavior among German over-50s is scarce. This study addresses this gap, empirically investigating OGS adoption factors within this demographic through an online survey with 179 respondents. Our findings reveal that over a third of the over-50 demographic has embraced OGS, indicating a growing receptivity for OGS among the over-50s. Notably, home delivery, product variety, convenience, and curiosity emerged as primary drivers for OGS adoption among this demographic. Surprisingly, most adopters did not increase online grocery orders since 2020 and a not inconsiderable proportion have even stopped buying groceries online again. For potential OGS adopters, regional product availability turned out as a motivator, signaling substantial growth potential and providing online grocers with strategic opportunities to target this demographic. In light of our research, we offer practical suggestions to online grocery retailers, aiming to overcome barriers and capitalize on key drivers identified in our study for sustained growth in the over-50 market segment.

Current Trends in Online Grocery Shopping

The convenience and accessibility of online shopping have revolutionized the retail industry, with online grocery shopping experiencing significant growth in recent years. This research paper explores the current trends in online grocery shopping, focusing on key factors driving its popularity and the challenges it faces. By analyzing consumer behavior, technological advancements, and market dynamics, this study aims to provide valuable insights into the evolving landscape of e-commerce within the grocery sector. The research delves into the shifting preferences of consumers towards online grocery shopping, emphasizing the convenience, time-saving benefits, and extensive product range offered by digital platforms. Furthermore, it examines the impact of changing lifestyles, especially in urban areas, on the rising demand for online grocery services. The study also addresses the crucial role of data analytics and AI-driven technologies in enhancing the customer experience and optimizing supply chain management for online grocery retailers. Moreover, the paper investigates the challenges associated with online grocery shopping, including issues related to delivery logistics, product quality, and customer satisfaction. It discusses strategies adopted by online retailers to overcome these challenges and build trust among consumers. Additionally, the research highlights the competitive landscape of the online grocery market, analyzing the strategies employed by key players to stay ahead in this rapidly evolving industry.

Assisting Healthier and More Sustainable Online Food Choices Through Digital Quality Signals: Exploring Preferences and Segments

The current paper contributes to signalling theory by demonstrating the importance of digital quality signals in influencing consumer preferences for sales and segmentation in the context of marketing fresh fish online. We conducted a choice-based conjoint analysis with a latent class segmentation to analyse the significance of digital quality signals compared to traditional attributes online. The analysis of 1,411 global consumers revealed that product rating was among the most important factors when purchasing fresh salmon fillets online. Latent class segmentation identified four distinct segments, the largest being ‘value for money’, where product rating and pricing were most important. The other segments were ‘environmentally friendly’, prioritising procurement methods and place of origin; ‘want it now’, where delivery was the most important factor; and ‘quality conscious’, which relied on three attributes – origin, delivery, and product rating. This study enhances understanding of the impact of socially mediated stimuli. It demonstrates the ability of digital quality signals to compensate for the absence of sensory evaluation in online store environments or deficiencies in knowledge or experience. The findings will benefit the food industry and online grocery retailers in promoting healthier and more sustainable products such as fish online.

Assortment and Fulfillment Optimization in Online Grocery Retail

Assortment and Fulfillment Optimization in Online Grocery Retail

The online grocery shopper's dilemma: Understanding the role of mediating risk on customer satisfaction

Online grocery shopping has emerged as a prominent choice, significantly accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This study delves into the factors impacting customer satisfaction in the realm of online grocery shopping, focusing on the mediating influence of perceived risk. The research, conducted with a sample size of 462, employed a convenience sampling technique for data collection. The data analysis was performed using Excel, SPSS, and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) through AMOS. The findings reveal that perceived product quality plays a pivotal role in positively and significantly influencing customer satisfaction within the online grocery shopping sphere. Conversely, perceived convenience, while positively correlated, exhibits insignificance in impacting customer satisfaction. Furthermore, this study highlights the existence of full mediation between perceived convenience and customer satisfaction, mediated by a variable, as evidenced by the non-zero values in the range of .040 to .105. This research underscores the importance for businesses engaged in online grocery retail to prioritize convenience as an essential element to enhance customer satisfaction.

The pricing strategies of online grocery retailers

This paper documents the differences in pricing strategies between online and offline (brick-and-mortar) channels. We collect price data for identical products from leading online grocery retailers in the United States and complement it with offline data for the same products from scanner data. Our findings reveal a consistent pattern: online retailers exhibit higher price dispersion than their offline counterparts. More specifically, online grocers employ price algorithms that amplify price discrimination in three key dimensions: (1) over time (through frequent price changes), (2) across locations (by charging varying prices based on delivery zipcodes), and (3) across sellers (by setting dispersed prices for identical products across rival retailers).

Customer demand concentration in online grocery retailing: Differences between online and physical store shopping baskets

The long-tail effect, in which online retailing has a relative advantage in selling less popular products, has been studied extensively with e-commerce growth. However, recent research has raised questions that are more nuanced than originally considered. E-commerce can lead to customer demand concentration under specific conditions such as recommendations of popular products and past-purchase shortcuts. This study explores customer demand concentration in multichannel grocery retailing, a product category that involves low search costs. We use multichannel and multichain purchase panel data, which are representative of a large portion of online supermarkets in Japan. Our analysis shows that, compared with demand in physical stores, demand online is more concentrated on popular products. Furthermore, online shopping experience has a moderating effect, resulting in greater demand concentration among more experienced customers. These results are robust when controlling for available assortments across channels. These findings help retailers to develop inventory and customer relationship management.

Parcel consolidation approach and routing algorithm for last-mile delivery by unmanned aerial vehicles

The last-mile delivery by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), emerging from the online grocery retailing industry, has attracted much attention and interest from the scientific and industrial communities. In reality, the online retailing platform receives grocery orders and promises ultrafast delivery service to the customers via a two-echelon logistics and distribution network. The uncertain arrivals of the orders have a nontrivial negative effect on the performance of the whole delivery network, which has not been well studied in the literature. This paper investigates the parcel consolidation policy and the UAVs routes for the last-mile delivery from a transshipment site in a distribution network to the final customers. First, this study proposes a nonmyopia consolidation policy considering the upcoming grocery parcels with random arrival times to minimize the total delivery cost including the possible penalty cost due to the delivery delay to the customer. To make the problem tractable in the real-time computational setting, an approximation method based on Bayesian estimation is proposed to reduce a large number of random arrival scenarios of upcoming parcels to an expected scenario. The problem is then approached with a deterministic model under the expected scenario. Subsequently, a discrete particle swarm optimization (DPSO) algorithm is developed to solve the model. In the algorithm, a novel decoding method is designed to evaluate the particles with respect to the constraints of the load and battery capacities of a UAV and a neighborhood search based on reinforcement learning is developed to improve the quality of the particles in the searching process. The experimental results based on a case study validate the performance of the proposed parcel consolidation approach and the UAV routing algorithm. Some findings are given based on the variations of benchmarks with different distributions of customer locations. The approaches and insights in this paper could be used as a reference for last-mile delivery by UAVs.

Data-Driven Order Fulfillment Consolidation for Online Grocery Retailing

Improving fulfillment efficiency is critical for long-term sustainability of online grocery retailing. In this paper, we study reducing order fulfillment cost by order consolidation. Motivated by the observation that a significant percentage of buyers place multiple orders within a short time interval, we propose a scheme that attempts to consolidate such “multiorders” to reduce the number of parcels and hence, the shipping cost. At the same time, it cannot significantly disturb the existing order fulfillment process or undermine the customer service level. Successful execution of the scheme requires a prediction of multiorder probabilities and a control policy that selectively prioritizes order processing. For the prediction task, we formulate a binary classification problem and use machine-learning algorithms to predict in real time the probability of a multiorder. For the control task, our proposal is to hold arriving orders in a temporary order pool for potential consolidation and to determine the release timing by a dynamic program. The proposed solution is estimated to capture 92.8% of all the multiorders at the cost of holding the orders for about 20.3 minutes on average. This translates to more than 10 million U.S. dollars of order fulfillment cost saving annually. History: This paper was refereed.

Online grocery shopping intentions in the post COVID-19 context: a case of millennial generations in Bangladesh

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore factors and their impacts influencing online grocery shopping intentions among customers in the post COVID-19 situation. Moreover, the study aims at evaluating the mediating roles of shopping habits during COVID-19 between perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and post COVID-19 online grocery shopping intentions.Design/methodology/approachBased on a review of the literature and collection of 401 useable valid responses, the study was conducted through structured questionnaires applying personal interview technique. The subsequent analysis was conducted through partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) using Smart PLS 3.3.3.FindingsThe study findings revealed that perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and shopping habits during COVID-19 have a significant influence on post COVID-19 online grocery shopping intentions. Also, the study has uncovered that perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use significantly influence shopping habits during COVID-19 among customers. Furthermore, the current study has revealed that hopping habit during COVID-19 significantly mediates the relationship between perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and post COVID-19 online grocery shopping intentions.Practical implicationsThe study findings have provided practical suggestions of developing and improving technological platforms to attract new customers for online grocery shopping. Further, the study suggests that online grocery retailers should apply adjusted pricing strategies using coupons and discount offers.Originality/valueThis paper investigates factors and its impacts on online grocery shopping intentions in post COVID-19 context. Therefore, the study uncovers the factors that add value to understanding customers' post COVID-19 online grocery shopping intentions by integrating perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and shopping habits during COVID-19.

Strategic investment modelling for retail sector post COVID-19

Amidst the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, the online grocery retail industry has faced significant obstacles. To overcome these challenges and adapt to shifting customer attitudes, retailers must embrace innovative strategies. These include implementing a home delivery service with rigorous sanitization measures, leveraging social media advertising to enhance consumer awareness, and utilizing preservation technology to uphold grocery items’ quality and freshness. In such a dynamic setting, it is only rational to acknowledge that the demand for products relies heavily upon the delivery firm’s service performance and the awareness it generates. The present study explores these vital investments within the online grocery retail store, comparing them with models lacking such investments. By optimizing investments in preservation technology, service, and advertisement, the model seeks to maximize the retailer’s overall profit. The findings unequivocally demonstrate that despite incurring additional costs, these investments wield financial dominance, boosting the total profit by an impressive 32%. The study concludes by presenting valuable insights derived from numerical and sensitivity analysis, offering invaluable guidance for the effective management of grocery items in the current post-pandemic era.

Modelling and analysing supply chain disruption: a case of online grocery retailer

Supply Chains (SCs) are becoming more vulnerable to disruption risks because of globalisation, competitiveness, and uncertainties. This study is motivated by an online grocery retailer in the UK that experienced multiple disruption risks, such as demand and supply shocks, facility closures, and disruption propagation simultaneously in 2020. The main purpose of this study is to model and perform quantitative analyses of a range of SC disruption risks affecting the UK online retailer. We have attempted to study how UK retailers responded to the first and second waves of the pandemic and the effect on multiple products. Six scenarios are developed based on SC disruption risks and their impacts on SC performance are analysed. The quantitative analysis of two strategies used by grocery retailers during the pandemic, namely vulnerable priority delivery slots and rationing of products, illustrates that rationing of products had a greater SC impact than the use of priority delivery slots. The effects of two resilience strategies, backup supplier and ramping up distribution centre capacity, are also quantified and discussed. Novel managerial insights and theoretical implications are discussed to make online grocery SC more resilient and robust during future disruptions.