“With safety top of mind, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic drove record numbers of people to shop online for groceries in 2020. Three years later, and with the worst of the crisis over, more than half (55%) of Spanish consumers continue to shop for groceries online, with the service now being used largely as an alternative to in-store top-up grocery shopping, highlighting opportunities for grocery retailers to leverage their store network to take advantage of this trend, with each outlet having the potential to be turned into an online order fulfilment centre. At the same time, consumers are becoming budget-focused and grocers are under pressure to keep prices low as well as meet shoppers’ growing preference for faster and more convenient deliveries”
– Stephen Mayles, Retail Analyst, April 2023
Key issues covered in this Report
- The impact of the cost-of-living crisis on the online grocery retailing sector
- Current level of online grocery shopping and how people receive their orders; whether people are shopping online for groceries more often
- Which companies people shop online for groceries with
- Attitudes towards certain aspects of online grocery shopping
- The strategies of the major grocery retailers relating to online
- Opportunities for expansion of the market.
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Overview
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- Key issues covered in this Report
- Areas covered in this Report
- Consumer research
- Market context
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Executive summary
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- The five-year outlook for online grocery retailing
- Figure 1: Spain: outlook for online grocery retailing, 2023-28
- The market
- Market size and performance
- Figure 2: Spain: estimated online grocery retailing sales (including VAT), 2020-22
- The consumer
- Engagement in online grocery shopping
- Figure 3: Spain: engagement in online grocery shopping, 2023
- Most use online to fill in the gaps in the main grocery shop
- Figure 4: Spain: engagement in online grocery shopping, 2023
- How they receive online grocery orders
- Figure 5: Spain: delivery/collection options for online grocery orders, 2023
- Retailers used to shop for groceries online
- Figure 6: Spain: retailers used to shop for groceries online, 2023
- Attitudes to online grocery shopping
- Figure 7: Spain: Attitudes to online grocery shopping, 2023
- Companies and brands
- Leading players
- Market shares
- Figure 8: Spain: leading online grocery retailers’ estimated share of all online grocery sales, 2022
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Issues and insights
- Sustainability can bring affordability during the cost-of-living crisis
- Greener deliveries by robots
- Barcelona ban on ‘dark stores’ will impact local delivery services apps
- Sustainability can bring affordability during the cost-of-living crisis
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Market size and performance
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- Figure 9: Spain: estimated online grocery retailing sales (including VAT), 2020-22
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Market drivers
- Challenging year ahead, but prospects for 2024 are more upbeat
- Figure 10: Spain: key economic projections, % annual change, 2019-24
- Consumers less gloomy as price pressures ease
- Figure 11: Spain: trends in levels of consumer confidence, 2020-23
- Food prices reach record levels despite VAT cuts
- Figure 12: Spain: Consumer prices * of food, non-alcoholic beverages and alcoholic beverages, annual % change, 2021-23
- Higher food and drink prices fuelling a preference for own-brands
- Figure 13: Spain: Issues faced in the last 2 months, 2022-23
- Core online grocery shopping group among the most financially stable
- Figure 14: Spain: Changes in financial situation over the past year, 2022-23
- Budgeting will remain a priority for those worse off financially
- Figure 15: Spain: Changes in financial situation over the past year, 2022-23
- Ecommerce pandemic-driven sales gains wiped out
- Figure 16: Spain: retail sales value and volume via mail order houses or via internet, 2020-23
- Inflation offsets volume drops
- Figure 17: Spain: retail sales value and volume of food, beverages and tobacco in specialised stores, 2020-23
- Spain’s ageing population is not without its online grocery opportunities
- Figure 18: Spain: Population size and age structure, 2020-35
- Rapid increase in food prices driving up spending on food and drink
- Figure 19: Spain: Consumer spending on food and drink (including VAT), 2017-22
- Ordering groceries via smartphone app will rise
- Figure 20: Spain: devices used to shop online in the past three months, 2023
- Voice-driven commerce a frictionless way to shop groceries online
- Figure 21: Spain: Device ownership, 2023
- Challenging year ahead, but prospects for 2024 are more upbeat
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Engagement in online grocery shopping
- 55% of Spanish consumers continue to buy groceries online post-pandemic
- Figure 22: Spain: engagement in online grocery shopping, 2020 and 2023
- Most use online for top-up grocery purposes
- Figure 23: Spain: engagement in online grocery shopping, 2020 and 2023
- Young consumers, high earners and households with young kids are key
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- Figure 24: Spain: engagement in online grocery shopping by gender, age, net monthly household income and children in household, 2023
- A little, but more often
- Figure 25: Spain: change in frequency of online grocery shopping, 2023
- 55% of Spanish consumers continue to buy groceries online post-pandemic
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How online grocery orders are received
- Delivery by courier the go-to for four in 10 shoppers
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- Figure 26: Spain: delivery/collection options for online grocery orders, 2020 and 2023
- Younger online grocery shoppers more likely to use faster delivery by courier
- Figure 27: Spain: delivery/collection options for online grocery orders by age, 2020 and 2023
- Delivery by courier the go-to for four in 10 shoppers
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Retailers used for online grocery shopping
- Nearly half of all online grocery shoppers shop at Mercadona
- Figure 28: Spain: retailers used to shop for groceries online, 2020 and 2023
- Nearly half of all online grocery shoppers shop at Mercadona
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Attitudes towards online grocery shopping
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- Figure 29: Spain: attitudes to shopping online for groceries, 2023
- With the cost-of-living crisis shrinking budgets, shoppers are looking for deals
- Figure 30: Spain: attitudes to shopping online for groceries, products on promotion, 2023
- Recyclable packaging an important factor when selecting an online grocer
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- Figure 31: Spain: attitudes to shopping online for groceries, recyclable packaging, 2023
- Those more demanding of speed are far more accepting of delivery charges
- Figure 32: Spain: attitudes to shopping online for groceries, time-saving justifies delivery charge, 2023
- Seamless store-to-fridge grocery delivery
- Figure 33: Spain: attitudes to shopping online for groceries, delivery drivers accessing home, 2023
- Shoppers largely reluctant to pay extra for greener deliveries
- Figure 34: Spain: attitudes to shopping online for groceries, pay more to offset emissions, 2023
- Make click-and-collect a destination where several missions can be fulfilled
- Figure 35: Spain: attitudes to shopping online for groceries, run errands when collect shopping, 2023
- Potential for upselling with in-store click-and-collect
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- Figure 36: Spain: attitudes to shopping online for groceries, purchase other items when collect shopping, 2023
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Companies and brands
- Mercadona is the leading online grocer
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- Figure 37: Spain: leading online grocery retailers estimated sales (including VAT), 2020-22
- Market shares
- Figure 38: Spain: leading online grocery retailers’ estimated market share of all online grocery sales, 2020-22
- Mercadona is the leading online grocer
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Appendix – Research methodology, data sources and abbreviations
- Abbreviations
- Consumer research methodology
- Data sources
- Abbreviations
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