Canadians disinterested in online grocery shopping
Canadians love online shopping for things like clothes and electronics, but food? Forget it.
A new survey from global research firm Mintel found 88% of Canadian grocery shoppers have never shopped for groceries online and 68% are not interested in trying it.
Part of the reason is that few bricks-and-mortar grocery retailers actually offer e-commerce. However, the resistance to the service primarily stems from concerns around the freshness of products, according to Mintel.
“Produce in particular is so tactile,” said Carol Wong-Li, senior lifestyles and leisure analyst at Mintel in Toronto. “People are used to picking it up, feeling the weight, smelling to
But it’s not all bad news. Of the 12% who have shopped for groceries online, most of them (8%) said they’d do it again. And there’s an opportunity for grocers to target both younger shoppers and Asian Canadians: the appeal of online shopping is higher 26% of those under 45 and 32% of Asian Canadians.
Additionally, the convenience of online grocery shopping is recognized by parents with children in the household (28%), those from larger households containing three or more people (25%) and those who are employed (24%).
“If grocery retailers are able to leverage that convenience factor, I think it will really drive