Having your groceries delivered to your doorstep in an hour is no longer a pipe dream.
In Asia, it is now easier than ever to order groceries online and get them delivered straight to your doorstep within minutes. Delivery platforms, such as Foodpanda’s Pandamart, now offer thousands of items, including daily essentials and fresh produce from small and medium enterprises and local grocers.
Deliveries during the pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has permanently changed the way people get groceries, food and other daily necessities. According to a new report by Forrester, the online grocery shopping category grew by 46% as the fastest-growing e-commerce sector in 2020 in APAC. Such a trend corresponds with the surge in consumer demand during the pandemic, when people can’t get out of their homes as frequently to shop in the supermarkets. Acknowledging the growing demand for online grocery shopping, new players have emerged in the category throughout the region to offer consumers the choice of a safe and convenient shopping experience.
For example, before the pandemic, India’s Flipkart only had a limited presence in the grocery scene. During the pandemic, it took advantage of the fastest-growing industry in India by expanding its delivery service and allowing its customers to have their daily needs delivered within 90 minutes. Reliance Retail, an Indian retailer, has also launched its online JioMart grocery store to serve the demands in more than 200 cities in India.
The successes of Singapore’s Pandamart
Since the launch of its first store in Singapore in October 2019, Foodpanda’s Pandamart has expanded its business to 40 cities across eight markets in Asia, including Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Bangladesh, Pakistan and the Philippines. Foodpanda now operates Asia’s largest network of cloud grocery stories. It provides consumers with more than 4,000 grocery and household products, and a delivery usually only takes around 25 minutes.
Pandamart leverages technology for accessibility and speed. Consumers do not have to walk into shops to place their orders, as they can rely on quick delivery from cloud stores. Technology and data intelligence form the basis of every Pandamart—from designating each store’s location, determining the products available in each store to deciding how inventory can be arranged within the space for maximum packing efficiency—so that products can be packed and delivered to consumers in a streamlined way.
Taking advantage of location intelligence and data trend insights, Pandamart strategically introduces products that cater to the preferences of its customers in specific locations. For example, recognizing that consumers value local food produce in Malaysia, Pandamart works with local partners to source more than 60% of its products, including vegetables and soft drinks, from within the country. In Singapore, similarly, popular homemade brands, such as Ooh Mala Chips, are offered in local Pandamarts.
The growth of HKTV mall in Hong Kong
The shoppertainment (a portmanteau of shopping and entertainment) platform HKTV mall was founded in Hong Kong as a subsidiary of Hong Kong Technology Venture Company Limited (HKTV). Consumers can use the app to shop for more than 600,000 products from over 100 world-renowned brands, covering groceries, skincare and makeup, electronics, housewares and mother and baby products. In the EcoMart section, users can even exchange, trade and give out pre-owned items in the marketplace. Seamless payment is facilitated by scanning the QR code at the merchant cashier using HKTVpay. Consumers can also shop smart with the transparent price trends displayed in the app and free delivery service on orders over HK$500.
There’s much to learn from these online grocery delivery services. One of the key requirements for startups to succeed is their ability to adapt and thrive in supposedly difficult or uncertain circumstances. Pandamart and HKTV mall have achieved that in spades.
Header image courtesy of Unsplash
