Grocery Retailing
Abstract
The paper talks about the trends that have affected grocery industry over the years. More specifically, technological factors have been outlined in details. The previous trends have been compared to the now growing reliance on technology for both production and delivery. In the paper, technology has been outlined as the major revolution towards the methods of order placements and distribution of products to customers. The other major factor that the paper has talked about is the issue of “global”. Here, details have been given depending on several sub-sections that sum up the global issues. Some of them include, segmentation, sustainability and even premiumsation. Generally, the paper has talked about the two trends and how they have affected the growth of the industry at large.
Introduction
The competitiveness of grocery retailing has grown over the years. Competition in the industry depends on bargaining several factors such as technological and global. This has come with a lot of potentiality for the growth of the industry. The industry is also affected by new entries. This has been escalated by the growing populations and descriptive research design that has seen the industry through determination of various market gaps within the grocery retailing sectors. Some of the trends tend to favor the industry in such a way that better results are likely to be achieved. The above-mentioned trends are vital in the sense that the industry will harness the benefits, reduce negativities and use all these combinations to build a bigger and better industry. This field of grocery retailing depends partly on the storage methods and conditions. Through this, poor management and storage of stock is likely to lead to a disadvantage Therefore, better management of stock would mean reduced wastage and increased profit on the part of the retailer. This paper will therefore look at these trends in parts and outline the possible impact depending on the prevalence of major factors.
Technological
From Kumar et.al the future of grocery retailing industry has been greatly influenced by the emergence and development of e-commerce. This follows the idea of online shopping where someone places an order then waits for pick-up. This trend has seen the new generation grow to its favor. This is because the young generation is digitally active in the sense that the number of mobile internet platform has gone to higher levels.
Basically, technology changed the way individuals go for shopping. Before this revolution, many used to visit stores for shopping. It came with its benefits too. Some of them include, having a walk outdoors with your family. This was important to them as well. Over time, the trends of shopping changes in the sense that, shoppers get used to the habit of e-commerce. This doesn’t mean that people have stopped walking into retail shops. Grocery retailers are found in several stores. This ranges from supermarkets to customized individual shops. E-commerce has helped the retailing process in supermarkets to go a notch higher. Here, virtual shoppers receive goods at their doorsteps and physical shoppers receive timely information about the available products. There are several delivery methods that were used in the past that have probably been done away with because of the onset of e-commerce. An example of such method was the idea of milkman. This person made home delivery milk products for several households within a region. Part of it entails doorstep delivery, a part which technology has embraced wholesomely. The other part of it involves physical order for delivery of the product. There are several options, depending on the time availability for respondents, that can be used to for order placements.
In other regions like Asia, online grocery shopping has gone higher. Proceeded with increments in versatile appropriation and broadband entrance, especially in the creating districts, have additionally supported on the web basic need deals. Provincially, Asia-Pacific reliably surpasses the worldwide normal for appropriation of all web based retailing choices. Requesting on the web for home conveyance is the most ordinarily favored adaptable retailing alternative in the area, with especially high utilization in China. More than 33% (37%) of Asia-Pacific respondents, and much more in China (46%), say they utilize an internet requesting and conveyance benefit. Selection levels for online programmed memberships are likewise especially high in this locale (22% versus 14% comprehensively), with China at the end of the day driving the way (30%). This is according to Inman, 2016.
Global
There have been economic hard times for the grocery industry globally. This has brought so many ideas of reevaluation of the industry. Global retailers have therefore decided that they change their strategies. A retailer’s technique may change starting with one market then onto the next in light of the fact that techniques are controlled by shopper ways of life, conduct and the pace of development in the district or nation, and additionally other macroeconomic elements. In this manner, monitoring the contrasts between business sectors, their basic supply retail structure and their purchasers, permits the provider or maker to gage how best to position their item offering (i.e. which configuation to target and which market to enter.) this is in accordance to Bogomolova, findings). Open doors for premium items are developing as retail channels broaden and shoppers turn out to be all the more requesting in created markets where buying force is most astounding. Nonetheless, notwithstanding the interest for higher quality and separation, estimating has additionally picked up significance all-inclusive accordingly of the monetary downturn. This has coordinate repercussions for providers and producers. Besides, in created markets has made open doors for retailers to venture into developing markets. This, thus, makes new prospects for items that might not have been as aggressive in created markets. By differentiation, these items could appreciate curiosity status in developing markets, where forceful development is relied upon to return once the economy recovers ground.
There have been several trends in this sector on a global platform. They include Segmentation, Discounting, Premiumsation and Sustainability. To begin with, the general store, which was the most widely recognized sustenance store configuration, is being dislodged to some degree by bigger hypermarkets on one hand and littler accommodation stores on the other. Design expansion and channel varieties have been key development procedures for a hefty portion of the world’s biggest sustenance retailers over the previous decade. This permits retailers to calibrate their development systems to meet particular market attributes, socioeconomics and land openings, both at home and universally. Secondly, Retail methodologies have been influenced by the worldwide economy, with numerous administrators offering a scope of vigorously marked down things. Notwithstanding, as the economy recoups in worldwide markets, both wellbeing and health and premiumisation will drive noteworthy item improvement which is seen from Mehra’s point of view. As esteem gets to be distinctly foremost, buyers will pay more for items that can offer them particular favorable circumstances, for example, better quality, bring down natural effect and focused costs.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Grocery retailing is one industry that has several weaknesses and strengths that would see it through progress and development over the years. Several trends ranging from technological to global procedures have proven to be vital. For instance, supplier relations with retailer is important for price stability of profit maximization. When orders are placed late, it affects the operations of the business. Low volume sellers are susceptible to high power bargaining customers. Technology has provided opportunity for several customers who cannot get time to travel to the stores to get whatever they need at their doorstep. This is therefore a positive trend that is most likely to have the best reception in all times. In addition, the rising generation are highly affiliated to the digital era. Secondly, global factors that affect grocery industry include some of the following; segmentation, discounting, premiumsation, and sustainability. Here, the industry stands a better chance of survive its internalization. This will expand the scope of their operations.
References
Kumar, V., Anand, A., & Song, H. (2016). Future of Retailer Profitability: An Organizing Framework. Journal of Retailing.
Inman, J., & Nikolova, H. (2016). Shopper-Facing Retail Technology: An Adoption Decision Calculus.
Bogomolova, S., Loch, A., Lockshin, L., & Buckley, J. (2016). Consumer factors associated with purchasing local versus global value chain foods. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems, 1-14.
Mehra, S. (2016). Consumers Store Choice Criteria in Organised and Unorganised Grocery Stores A Study at NCR Region.