America's online grocery shopping is projected to raise from US$15 billion to US$ 21 billion by the end of 2016.
The "Groceries 2.0" study has reported 2013 Forrester Research which showed that America's online grocery shopping market is equal to US$15 billion of a US$1 trillion market, Australia Food News reported. It was estimated that online shopping will increase to $21 billion by the end of 2016 despite a slow uptake when compared to online sales in other retail industries.
Data collection company Field Agent compiled the "Groceries 2.0" report and listed a variety of reasons why grocery shoppers have been hesitant in embracing online shopping.
It was found out that shoppers were far more likely to purchase items such as canned goods, alcohol, toiletries and other bathroom products than dairy, meat and other fresh produce. Hence, one key concern raised was the ability to touch, feel and smell fresh products purchased online. There were also other concerns raised which include time, location-sensitivity for delivery options and missing out in-store discounts and promotions.
Furthermore, the report named US giant Walmart as a case in point for a skyward trend towards online grocery shopping in the United States. The chain has launched a pick-up service in 2014 which recounted good results with 41% of first-time users saying they would definitely use Walmart's pick-up service again and 38% of users saying they would endorse it to friends.
The report has identified six challenges and opportunities for Walmart's pick-up service: 1) Only 46% of the respondents had actually heard of the service, suggesting that the newest service offered has not yet been rolled out to all parts of America; 2) Half of the first-time users said delivery took longer than expected; 3) 36% of people surveyed who had used the survey said everything they wanted was made available through the service; 4) 32% said they did not go looking for a substitution product; 5) Close to half of shoppers said they still wanted to go inside the store even with the use of the online service; and 6) When asked why they might avoid Walmart's pick-up service in the future, they said they are afraid of missing out on sales and promotions and not being able to see, smell and touch the products they want to buy.
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