For years, consumers in Germany were cold shouldered by the offers of online groceries and preferred to buy meat and vegetables in the supermarket or at the discounter around the corner. But everything seems different since the outbreak of the Corona crisis. The fear of the new type of corona virus brought unprecedented growth rates to online delivery services from Rewe, Edeka, Picnic, Getnow to Amazon Fresh.
Before the Corona crisis, consumers in Germany had little interest in buying food online. A survey commissioned by management consultancy AlixPartners showed last year that only one in four consumers has ever ordered groceries online.
In the home country of discounters and cooperative supermarkets, groceries were at the bottom of the online wish list as a product category. The main reason given was 54 percent of customers’ concerns about the quality and freshness of goods when shopping online.
The trade expert Peter Heckmann from AlixPartners is convinced that this should change permanently. “For the online food trade, the current situation is a great opportunity to move out of its niche. After the crisis, e-commerce will probably play a bigger role in this area because many customers are now realizing that the offers are attractive . “
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