An examination of consumer preference on the types of online grocery retailers and delivery services

초록

Purpose This study aims to examine customer preference for online grocery shopping by analysing factors influencing consumers' choices on i) different types of online grocery retailers and ii) various types of delivery services. Design/methodology/approach This study is based on the consumer survey data on online grocery shopping behaviour in South Korea as of January 2021. Twenty online grocery retailers are categorized as open market e-tailers, e-grocery retailers, and omnichannel retailers. Types of delivery services include early morning delivery, delivery on specified date & time window, same-day delivery, delivery within 3 hours after the order, subscription-based periodic delivery. The multinomial logit (MNL) model is used to analyse the factors influencing the consumers’ choice of different types of online grocery retailers and delivery services. Findings The dominant choice factors for the three types of online grocery retailers are i) selling processed food that can be handled at ambient temperature at a low price while providing a convenient online shopping environment (open market e-tailers), ii) providing unique, high-quality fresh produce and home-ready meal in safe and reliable packaging services (e-grocery retailers), and iii) providing high-quality fresh produce and processed food delivered at customer-specified dates and times (omnichannel retailers). In terms of delivery services, consumers prefer to receive fresh produce on a specified date and time window than for early morning delivery.