Online Grocery Shopping and Grocery Deliveries in the UK
In the UK, it's pretty common to have groceries delivered. But why? How? And who should you order from?
Why would you ever order groceries online?There are so many reasons!
Spending time in a grocery store may not be your idea of a good time.
Perhaps you're ill or shielding from illness and it's best not to visit the shops.
If you're in London and you don't have a car, grocery deliveries are a godsend!
If you've just moved and you need to buy everything from salt to toilet bowl cleaner, online grocery shopping is the way to go!
Online grocery shopping has grown in popularity over the years. Of course, it was in high demand during pandemic lockdowns and some people found that they liked the convienence of having groceries delivered.
Kantar statistics show that three years ago, about 8% of groceries purchased in the UK were done so online. In March 2022, 12.6% of grocery sales in the UK were made online. Spryker's research shows that 60% of consumers in the UK do some online grocery shopping and about 16% of people in the UK do most of their grocery shopping online.
How did it all get started?
It all started with a company called Supermarket Direct in October 1995 who made a deal with Sainsbury's to become the first major grocery store to have an online shopping service in the UK
So, what are the most popular grocery delivery services?
The most popular is Tesco. Generally this is due to their reputation of having low prices and offering a wide variety of goods. I've done some online shopping with Tesco and it was definitely a success. The platform is easy to use, there are lots of delivery slots and they service the whole of the UK really well. Unfortunately, they didn't have several of my regular items (mostly luxury goods from outside of the UK).
The second most popular is Sainsbury's. Again, likely down to having lower prices and offering a wide selection of groceries and other goods. I've done a decent amount of online shopping with Sainsbury's. They carry some American and German items that are in my regular weekly shopping list that other stores don't carry and their produce selection is very good. There is a default option to delivery groceries without bags, which is best for the environment, but if you select this, keep this in mind when the groceries are delivered. It's good to have an extra pair of hands to deal with the incoming groceries!
The third most popular online grocer is Ocado. Ocado only exists online; there aren't physical stores that you can go into. So, they partner with a brick and mortar shop for some of their groceries. They have been partnered with Marks and Spencer for a couple years now but were previously partnered with Waitrose. What's great about Ocado is that you get all the selection from their partner grocer as well as their own brand groceries and they also offer good quality brand home goods as well. During the pandemic, there was a scramble to order groceries online and it was nearly impossible to get a slot during the first week of lockdown. However, because my weekly shop was mostly done through Ocado, they offered me a slot since I was an established, regular customer. It seems a bit silly now, but at the time, it was such a relief that they've earned permanent brownie points with me. Also, I've found the drivers for Ocado are among the nicest people I've met in the UK.
Asda is fourth most popular online grocer. You're probably familiar with Asda because we have this in the US. It's completely the same shop! One bonus with Asda is that their minimum spend threshold for free delivery is very low.
The fifth most popular online grocer is Waitrose. If you are a wine drinker, this is the grocery store for you! They have consistently high quality produce and although it's thought of as more of a luxury grocer, they do have an Essentials line of basic items at a cheap price.
