Europe Online Grocery Delivery Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2023-2028)

The European online grocery delivery market is expected to register a CAGR of 17.2% over the forecasted period. The market is driven by increased digital literacy, convenience of use, extensive availability of branded products, economic value with price comparison across brands, discounts and deals, and express delivery. Customers have been drawn to online shopping platforms for a long time because they are convenient and get more and more tailored to their needs. This has increased demand for online grocery delivery.

Key Highlights

• Online grocery ordering has become increasingly popular in recent years. One of the primary drivers of market growth is the increasing proliferation of smartphones and internet connections, which allow for very easy and speedy meal delivery. According to GSMA Intelligence, 474 million individuals in Europe (86% of the population) subscribed to mobile services in 2021, and this figure is predicted to rise to 480 million by 2025.
• The incorporation of IOT enables consumers to select online grocery delivery services using voice commands, thereby simplifying the delivery procedure. Such technological advancements are expected to propel the market under consideration. IoT connects businesses to restaurants, allowing them to provide quick delivery. For example, there may be days when they have larger orders that must be fulfilled within a specific time frame. The only thing that matters to a person when making a purchase is their online experience. It must be flawless from the very first use.
• According to Otter, a delivery management and optimization platform survey conducted between January and June last year stated that people throughout the UK like ordering on weekends. The busiest day for delivery is Sunday (16.5% of all orders), followed by Saturday (16.4%) and Friday (16.3%). The number of orders is stable at the start of the week, with a little increase on Thursday. In terms of hours, the most popular time to order delivery is at night, with the 7 to 8 p.m. timeframe leading the way.
• The COVID-19 pandemic benefited the industry since it promoted the usage of online grocery delivery services as millions of individuals were instructed to stay at home to contain the health catastrophe. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the online grocery platform became one of the key players. Delivery services grew rapidly as people ordered more fast food during the pandemic. UberEats dominates the French takeout delivery industry. Still, Deliveroo tripled its subscribers by giving unlimited deliveries for a tiny introductory price of USD 1, rising to USD 5.99 at the end of the second year.
• On the flip side, apart from the consumer base, food expenses are also highly unpredictable. Several variables influence food pricing. Food delivery companies frequently struggle to keep up with market prices and establish a proper pricing strategy. Along with inflation and the mounting revenue shortfalls of its partners, food delivery services must focus on implementing offensive or defensive pricing methods to compete. This puts even more pressure on margins and has an impact on profitability.

Europe Online Grocery Delivery Market Trends

Attractive Offers and Payment Flexibility to Boost the Demand of the Market

• There are numerous payment options available in Europe. There are also countless local players. Customers frequently prefer these over prominent international players. As a result, merchants often collaborate with one of the many payment providers with a gateway to many payment systems. According to research by Payvision, European consumers prefer using digital wallets (44%). This is followed by payments by card (42%), and PayPal is in third place (32%).
• A study by Divido indicated that about 17% of consumers in the country agreed that the availability of different finance options was essential. About 36% admitted they would like to shop again at a retailer offering such opportunities. At the same time, retailers see up to 30% more sales and benefits like repeat purchases, more loyal customers, and more basket conversions when they offer the above feature.
• In the Netherlands, more people are going cashless for online and offline payments. According to the Dutch Central Bank, only 20% of payments made last year in the country were made with cash, which is among the world’s lowest. To leverage this growing opportunity, tech firms, credit card companies, and the government launched a variety of mobile payment services. Further, the average purchase cost was USD 21.64 before the coronavirus pandemic. Over 18% more was spent at checkout counters by Dutch shoppers, who paid an average of USD 25.55.
• Saving money when dining out isn't always straightforward; most restaurant promotions aren't valid every day of the week or only apply to particular areas of Spain. For instance, La Tagliatella. Download the app and sign up to receive a USD 20 discount voucher to be used on the user's birthday. In addition, Pans & Company Pans & Company's app is available in English; download it to receive 200 points, and then for each order, the user receives 5 times the euro value in points.
• According to Paysafe Group, in the past year, inflation has influenced payment habits for online purchases in Germany, with four out of ten respondents now using a credit card. According to a poll conducted in ten countries across North America, Europe, and Latin America, the cost of living had no effect on payment behavior in those countries. Credit cards, BNPL, and cryptocurrency were all used more frequently. Still, neither saw the greatest increase: 52 percent of respondents who changed their payment habits due to higher living costs in the last year are paying online with debit cards more frequently than they did the previous year.

United Kingdom is Expected to Observe a Significant Growth

• Recognizing existing regulatory loopholes in online food sales, the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) has collaborated with three of the country's top online food delivery platforms to create a new Food Safety Charter. The charter requires Just Eat, Uber Eats, and Deliveroo to make sure that the 170,000 businesses that provide food through their services are registered with their local authorities and meet the essential requirements of the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme.
• In January last year, Jiffy announced 'Jiffy Q-Commerce as a Service,' allowing brands and retailers to offer sub-15-minute delivery of their products through their own DTC site while utilizing Jiffy's ordering system and fulfillment network. Brewdog is the program's first partner, and it is working with Jiffy to set up a service that delivers beer very quickly.
• Recently, dispatch, based in London, has become best known for its finish-at-home meal kits. The startup recently received a USD 10 million seed round led by Andreessen Horowitz and LocalGlobe. The cash will allow an additional 20 eateries to join the platform by the end of this year, enhancing customer options. Dishpatch will also expand its personnel in marketing, technology (including platform development and packaging technologists), distribution, and customer service.
• According to Otter, Brits spend an average of USD 21.29 on each delivery order, but they're willing to splurge somewhat more on weekends. The average spending by meal reveals larger disparities. Later in the day, they spend more money, whereas early meals remain under USD 20. This fast-increasing number of cloud kitchens is projected to fuel the online meal ordering trend, which is good news for the industry's growth.
• The platform-to-consumer strategy addresses logistics and resource issues in grocery delivery while also providing shipment services to grocery stores that do not have in-house delivery resources. During the projected period, an increase in the number of investments of this type is expected to drive the growth of this category, primarily in major cities. The restaurant-to-consumer industry handles the shipment aspect, while online meal delivery service providers handle the ordering procedure. To reach this sector, firms using this strategy offer consumers loyalty and subscription programs. The integration of several restaurant chains with aggregators like DoorDash promotes industry growth even further.

Europe Online Grocery Delivery Market Competitor Analysis

The European online grocery delivery market is moderately competitive owing to the presence of multiple players. Players in the market use strategies like coming up with new products, merging with other companies, and buying other companies in order to grow their product lines, reach more places, and stay competitive in the market.

In March 2022, the Casino Group and Just Eat France will collaborate to make life easier for French citizens by delivering food to their doors in 30 minutes. Just can match consumer expectations even better because of its cooperation with the Casino Group in France. This agreement covers the group's French food brands, such as Franprix, Monoprix, Vival, Le Petit Casino, La Nouvelle Cave, and others.

In February 2022, after announcing an international commercial deal, France-based food retailer Carrefour and European online grocery marketplace Everli expanded their partnership to ten towns in France. Carrefour's hypermarkets and supermarkets will be available on Everli in Lille, Lyon, Nice, Toulouse, Bordeaux, Montpellier, Nantes, Grenoble, Rennes, and Paris, as well as their neighboring districts. Consumers in these locations can order up to 25,000 products from over 140 local retailers and have them delivered on the same day.

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