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More than half of shoppers buy groceries online

Research also reveals that 80% of UK consumers would do more food shopping online if the experience was improved.

More than half (60%) of consumers buy at least some of their groceries online, with 16% now ordering all or most of their groceries via the internet, according to research by digital commerce platform Spryker.

The company’s UK Online Grocery Report 2022, which spoke to 2,500 UK consumers, finds that, while the UK has a mature and robust online grocery market, there are still opportunities for expansion in a sector valued at £200bn. The research reveals that 80% of UK consumers say they would do more food shopping online if the experience was improved and 28% plan to shop mostly online within the next two years. Home delivery is further cited as the preferred channel (23%) over pick-up in-store (6.6%).

When it comes to brand recognition, 77% of those surveyed recognised Uber Eats, putting it on an equal footing with Just Eat; Deliveroo followed in third place with 74%. However, Amazon was only identified by 63% as an online grocery provider. Meanwhile, Gorillas and Getir were recognised by 17% and 21%, respectively, while other on-demand providers – Zapp, GoPuff, Jiffy, and Weezy – fell between 5% and 15%.

The research underlined further growth opportunities for online grocery providers in rural locations. Online shoppers were more likely to live in cities with access to numerous local grocery stores, whereas those in rural locations were less likely to buy online – despite being further from a supermarket.

However, this isn’t necessarily due to a lack of demand – there are simply fewer online grocery services available in smaller towns and rural areas. In fact, despite a lack of availability there is a strong desire for e-food services in these areas, with 17% of respondents from rural locations already doing most of their shopping online.