Online grocery shopping is getting more popular with every passing day, especially among millennials and Gen-Z consumers. In a study report, it is estimated that around 60 percent of millennials and 58 percent of Gen-Z consumers increased their regular grocery shopping online.
The purchasing power of both millennials and Gen-Zs is increasing rapidly. Therefore, it is crucial for omnichannel grocery suppliers or platforms to analyze the online purchasing habits of modern consumers. Let us understand the latest online grocery shopping trends among millennials and Gen-Zs and what drives them to shop grocery online.
Online Grocery Shopping Trends
To understand the trends, it is imperative for you to understand the latest stats related to the current generation’s online grocery shopping patterns. Here are some to consider:
- Millennials and Gen-Z consumers are most likely to spend around 2k-5k on average on a single online grocery shopping endeavour.
- Around 4 in this generation tend to buy groceries online weekly.
- This generation prefers convenience and habit-centric shopping when it comes to online grocery.
How Frequently Do Millennials and Gen-Zs Shop Grocery Online?
The shopping habits of this group of buyers gravitate towards weekly shopping. For an online grocery supplier or retailer, this implies assured recurring income, especially if they offer a seamless, convenient, and hassle-free online grocery shopping experience.
It is also observed that the buying patterns of millennials tend to be quite reliable.
How Much Do Millennials and Gen-Zs Spend on Grocery Shopping?
When it comes to shopping grocery online, there is not much difference when it comes to the spending power of millennials and Gen-Z buyers. The group is believed to spend around $5k weekly on groceries.
This figure falls in line with the fact that most shoppers in this group are averse to paying online for a smaller amount. To justify the convenience expense of the delivery fee, they make it worthwhile by getting more items delivered at once. In this case, this also represents a great opportunity for online grocery suppliers. Online orders tend to imply large average totals for the cart value.
What is the Reason Behind the Online Grocery Shopping Trends for Millennials and Gen-Zs?
This group of shoppers chooses to buy groceries online for several reasons. Some of these are:
- Convenience
Convenience serves to be the primary reason why members of all generations prefer shopping online in the first place.
While studying the shopping behaviour of Gen-Zs, it was observed that it is a highly tech-savvy generation and, therefore, is immensely comfortable shopping through apps. It is estimated that around 50 percent of the group prefers online shopping almost daily. Moreover, it is also believed that Gen-Zs are omnichannel consumers. Therefore, they prefer both the ease and speed of grocery app delivery services when they might be busy. While they have come of age in the generation of instant gratification and next-day delivery services, they also enjoy spending ample time browsing and comparing other available options before placing the final order.
Millennials are known as prolific buyers. Therefore, they are quite comfortable shopping online. They have a number of reasons to choose the overall convenience of online grocery shopping. A majority of the millennial population has started expanding its family. Therefore, they are busier than ever before. Those who haven’t taken their lives to the next level tend to have discretionary income sources to spend on the convenience and ease of online shopping.
Members of all generations prefer online grocery shopping. The more seamless the experience, the more they keep coming back. Therefore, it is crucial for online grocery providers to optimize their shopping systems.
- Price
Most participants noted price as one of the primary factors governing online shopping. With rapid inflation taking over the globe, grocery shopping has become more expensive than ever before. Therefore, it is understandable that people from all walks of life value the ability to shop from the comfort of their homes. This helps them save money significantly.
Both millennials and Gen-Zs are concerned about delivery charges. At the same time, this generation is also drawn to the wide array of discounts, coupons, and promotions. This tends to significantly influence the brands they choose during online shopping.
- Accessibility
Surprisingly, a number of millennials and Gen-Z buyers voted for accessibility as another important factor that influences their shopping decisions. Due to their average incomes and young age, it is more likely that this group of consumers lacks proper access to modes of transportation to the nearest brick-and-mortar grocery store. Moreover, Gen-Zs are driving less due to environmental concerns and the ever-rising costs of automobiles and insurance.
At the same time, the experience of carrying baggage on public transit can make the concept of online grocery shopping more attractive.
Impressing Millennials and Gen-Zs with Contextual Commerce
As far as cooking something specific at home is concerned, the survey respondents of this generation listed recipe sites and food blogs as the leading sources of meal inspiration. The area wherein the two generations tend to differ is the order. For instance, millennials voted for food blogs, and Gen-Zs preferred food content on social media.
Conclusion
Clearly, millennials and Gen-Zs are different breed of modern shoppers. Therefore, it is imperative for online retailers and providers to adapt to meet their unique preferences and needs.
For groceries to win over the shopping preferences of this generation, it is crucial to engage them through social media interactions. These generations also want brands to understand and meet their unique needs. Grocery providers are expected to offer a warm, inviting vibe while offering ample convenience for shopping online.
