Company News • 10.08.2015
China's online grocery market to hit $180bn by 2020
Foreign brands popular with Chinese shoppers
The Chinese online grocery market, already the world’s largest, is set to be worth almost $180bn by 2020 – nearly five times its current value of $41bn, according to the latest IGD research.
Joanne Denney-Finch, IGD chief executive, said: “There’s going to be significant growth across all of the top 10 online grocery markets. This is being driven by busy shoppers making the most of more digital technologies and the rising trend of ‘anywhere, anytime shoppers’. They add to their online shopping basket over a period of time on whichever device is most handy at that moment. New innovations, such as grocery delivery services from Instacart and Uber, are also helping to support online’s rapidly increasing popularity by providing convenient time-saving solutions.”
On China, Joanne Denney-Finch said: “Already the world’s largest, the Chinese online grocery market is maturing rapidly and will significantly dwarf other countries by 2020. This will be powered by more people in China having access to the internet both through smartphones and other devices. Given the size of its population, even a small change will have a significant impact. Most online sales in China take place through digital marketplaces, such as Alibaba’s business to consumer site Tmall. These allow international retailers without stores in China to gain instant access to new customers and tap into the booming Chinese market with limited investment."
"Other international retailers, as well as local players, are also launching their own online and mobile grocery shopping sites. Food is seen as an affordable luxury, with foreign brands popular with Chinese shoppers wary of the safety scares surrounding locally sourced food and drink. To cater for this demand, companies such as Alibaba and Amazon have recently introduced dedicated sites for imported goods. Many Chinese people also prefer shopping using their smartphones, so retailers are offering mobile-only promotions which are updated regularly to encourage shoppers to keep visiting their websites for the latest deals.”
Source:The Institute of Grocery Distribution
channels: online trading, e-commerce
