Some of the changes that are already taking place in food retail areas are:

The increase in online shopping

This is one of the main priorities of groups. The Schwarz Group, which owns Lidl, has bought one of the largest e-commerce sites in Germany, and food giant Walmart has closed a deal with Canadian e-commerce platform Shopify.

There have also been alliances in the distribution sector with delivery companies. As examples, in Spain, Glovo has signed agreements with Carrefour the Dia group, and in Dublin Aldi has signed an agreement with Deliveroo. Taking a step further, WhatsApp has launched a digital payment platform in Brazil following in the footsteps of WeChat in China.

Shop & Go, Click & Collect, Click & Car or Pedestrian Drives

They are some of the delivery formulas that are gaining more weight every day. The aim is to make shopping easier for the customer by adapting to his or her lifestyle. BonÁrea supermarkets offer the possibility of delivering the products in boxes so that they can be picked up later during the day and at the time that is most convenient for the customer. In Europe, home delivery systems are already being tested at times when the customer is not there (While you’re away) or in the boot of the car itself.

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Dark supermarkets

Most supermarkets prepare the orders from the shop itself with the consequent impact on cost or the lack of available product at the time of the order. Dark stores arise to respond to these needs. These are operational warehouses for the preparation and shipment of orders arriving from the online shop (such as the Mercadona warehouse mentioned above). 

Located in densely populated areas, their distribution is the same as that of a shop, however, the main point of difference is that they have not been designed for direct sales. 

Grocerants

Catering and food come together and the concept of “Grocerants” is created as a hybrid concept between a food shop and a restaurant. Such is the case of Carrefour and Glovo that have joined to sell ready prepared meals or Dia&Go where they have a breakfast service in the supermarket, Lidl to go, that offers instant hamburgers and hot dogs, El Mercado de Carrefour that offers food halls with different spaces dedicated to food or Mercadona that has included a take-away section in its supermarkets.

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SELF CHECK OUT

The global pandemic has produced a surge in sales where the client does not interact with anyone. “Amazon Go” has launched supermarkets without cashiers (self-check out) and hypermarkets have assigned more and more spaces to cashiers without a salesperson where the client does not interact with anyone during the whole purchase process.

Sustainability

Sustainability marks the path of the supermarkets. As a result of the growing concern of the consumer for the environment, more and more people are opting to consume vegetable origin food, reduce plastic and sell in bulk or consume seasonal products exclusively.

proximity shopping

The coronavirus crisis has highlighted the importance of proximity shopping. Spar has diversified its commitment in the Netherlands with the launching of Spar City Small, aimed at a young urban public, with an offer adapted to each moment of the day and focusing on prepared food. The supermarket chain has also launched Spar mini mobile, an 18 sq m individual shop format that offers a new solution to ensure social distance due to the pandemic.