Browsing for food: Will COVID‐induced online grocery delivery persist?

Abstract

The COVID‐19 pandemic altered daily activities. Many consumers reverted to online grocery shopping and home delivery. We analyze factors associated with the decision to grocery shop online and whether this will persist post‐COVID using data collected via a representative online Qualtrics panel in the State of New Jersey ( N = 1,419). Around half of respondents either decreased in‐person shopping, increased online shopping, or pursued a combination of both. We used factor analysis to decompose attitudes towards the pandemic, finding that attitudinal responses broke down into ‘fearful’, ‘believers’, and ‘deniers’. Binomial regressions were used to analyze patterns of frequency of grocery shopping during the pandemic and changes in behavior during the pandemic. Results suggest that age, gender, ethnicity, educational attainment, having children at home, and attitudes towards COVID‐19 are likely to influence frequency of online and in‐person grocery shopping. Specifically, being 50 years or older is negatively associated with online grocery shopping. Those who deny COVID‐19 were less likely to decrease in‐person grocery shopping. People who had children at home, who had advanced degrees, or who were of Hispanic origin were more likely to increase online shopping and decrease in‐person shopping during the pandemic. While our results suggest that in‐person grocery shopping will return to prepandemic levels, we found that respondents report some increased persistence in online grocery shopping post‐COVID.

The impact of COVID-19 pandemic restrictions on offline and online grocery shopping: New normal or old habits?

“…This research differs from previous publications in several aspects. While recent publications, e.g., by Tyrväinen and Karjaluoto [ 49 ], Gruntkowski and Martinez [ 48 ], Shen [ 46 ], Younes et al [ 54 ], Gomes and Lopez [ 55 ] and Eriksson and Stenius [ 56 ] are based on survey data, we provide an empirical analysis based on real purchase data. This allows us to observe purchases of the same households before, during and after the pandemic to show the evolution of offline and online grocery shopping.…”

Digital transformation in food retail: a case study of Lithuania e-grocery buying behaviours

“…In South Korea, consumer preferences for delivery services show a strong inclination towards dawn deliveries using personal iceboxes, indicating that the type of packaging can be even more influential than the delivery time in shaping consumer choices (Park, 2023). The rapid growth of the online grocery shopping sector is influenced by a complex interplay of factors such as global health crises, demographic characteristics, and evolving consumer expectations (Younes, Noland, & Zhang, 2022;Gomes & Lopes, 2022;Oeser et al, 2018;Pitts et al, 2018;Hood et al, 2020;Park, 2023).…”

“…Older adults often have specific dietary needs, impacting food demand. Studies by Younes, Noland, & Zhang (2022) and Gomes & Lopes (2022) reveal behavioural shifts in food shopping, with older individuals less likely to adopt online grocery shopping. This highlights the demographic nuances in e-commerce adoption.…”

“…Understanding consumer behaviour in food consumption and e-commerce is increasingly important in today's digital age. The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic has served as a catalyst, driving a significant portion of consumers towards online grocery shopping platforms (Younes, Noland & Zhang, 2022;Gomes & Lopes, 2022). This trend is not merely a response to global health concerns; it also highlights the' convenience of egroceries and flexibility in daily life (Hood et al, 2020).…”

“…Furthermore, this shift is not uniform across all demographics. Age, gender, ethnicity, and educational attainment are just some factors that influence these behavioural changes (Younes, Noland & Zhang, 2022;Hood et al, 2020;Park, 2023). The growing interest in online grocery shopping has had several ripple effects.…”